AMF Tjanstepension AB Raises Stock Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 14.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 401,611 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 49,236 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $65,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PG. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Wyrmwood Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of PG stock traded down $1.69 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $164.93. The company had a trading volume of 9,253,066 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,596,827. The Procter & Gamble Company has a fifty-two week low of $141.45 and a fifty-two week high of $169.41. 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’s fifty day moving average is $165.60 and its 200 day moving average is $158.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $389.26 billion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.42.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $20.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.43 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.91% and a net margin of 18.00%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.37 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th were paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 18th. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is 65.85%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In related news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total value of $4,581,309.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,265.43. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 21,388 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.98, for a total value of $3,528,592.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 36,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,080,172.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total value of $4,581,309.81. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,265.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 154,544 shares of company stock valued at $25,413,051. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on PG shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. BNP Paribas started coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $187.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.72.

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.