Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG Boosts Stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 493.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 341,750 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 284,174 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises 1.3% of Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $57,294,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth $33,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 972.0% during the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% during the third quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DecisionPoint Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PG. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.53.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total value of $2,210,944.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,002,804.35. This represents a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,189,463.68. This represents a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 151,097 shares of company stock valued at $25,635,076 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PG opened at $162.84 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $381.84 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The business has a 50-day moving average of $166.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.45. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12 month low of $153.52 and a 12 month high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 64.17%.

Procter & Gamble Profile

Procter & Gamble Co engages in the provision of branded consumer packaged goods. It operates through the following segments: Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric and Home Care, and Baby, Feminine and Family Care. The Beauty segment offers hair, skin, and personal care. The Grooming segment consists of shave care like female and male blades and razors, pre and post shave products, and appliances.