Virtu Financial LLC Has $770,000 Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Virtu Financial LLC cut its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 51.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,594 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,828 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA now owns 236,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,833,000 after purchasing an additional 2,179 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 55,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,374,000 after purchasing an additional 1,818 shares during the last quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter worth $668,000. Fortem Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $569,000. Finally, Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. boosted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. now owns 123,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,764,000 after buying an additional 2,568 shares in the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

PG stock opened at $165.73 on Tuesday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $153.52 and a 1-year high of $180.43. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average price of $168.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.58. The firm has a market cap of $388.61 billion, a PE ratio of 26.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion for 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 company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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 note on Thursday, January 16th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.47.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.