Highland Capital Management LLC Sells 1,086 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Highland Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 113,684 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,086 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises about 1.1% of Highland Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $18,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 1,497 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. LCM Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. LCM Capital Management Inc now owns 5,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $925,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Emerald Advisors LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Emerald Advisors LLC now owns 3,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $553,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Mechanics Financial Corp lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp now owns 16,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,372,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Sundar G. Raman sold 31,924 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.95, for a total transaction of $5,329,711.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 19,042 shares in the company, valued at $3,179,061.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 855 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.50, for a total transaction of $135,517.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,004 shares in the company, valued at approximately $634,634. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sundar G. Raman sold 31,924 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.95, for a total value of $5,329,711.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 19,042 shares in the company, valued at $3,179,061.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 154,544 shares of company stock worth $25,413,051. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays raised their price target on Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Argus raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.74.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $166.74 on Monday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $141.45 and a 1-year high of $169.41. The business has a 50-day moving average of $166.11 and a 200-day moving average of $160.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $393.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.22, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.10. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.91% and a net margin of 18.00%. The company had revenue of $20.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.37 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 19th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.85%.

Procter & Gamble Profile

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands.