Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 0.1% – Should You Sell?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) shares were down 0.1% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $165.92 and last traded at $167.11. Approximately 2,247,935 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 7,087,449 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on PG shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.53.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

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 simple moving average of $166.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $398.78 billion, a PE ratio of 27.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.45.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.84 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aurdan Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $505,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $250,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 4,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $774,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,708,975 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,510,000 after purchasing an additional 17,151 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 24,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,063,000 after acquiring an additional 2,720 shares in the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.