Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading Up 2.1% – Here’s Why

Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) were up 2.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $179.99 and last traded at $179.65. Approximately 2,664,386 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 6,350,264 shares. The stock had previously closed at $175.95.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.47.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market cap of $405.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The company’s fifty day moving average is $167.14 and its 200 day moving average is $169.84.

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

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 64.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total value of $6,078,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,829,817.68. The trade was a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,503,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,432,000 after purchasing an additional 56,583 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,442,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,734,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $820,031,000 after buying an additional 608,168 shares during the last quarter. United Bank lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 13,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory now owns 3,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $527,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Procter & Gamble

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.