Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading Down 0.3% – What’s Next?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) fell 0.3% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $163.32 and last traded at $164.17. 1,413,807 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 7,468,625 shares. The stock had previously closed at $164.74.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on PG shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.25.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $168.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $390.64 billion, a PE ratio of 28.60, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its earnings results 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 33.25% and a net margin of 17.07%. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21,657,595.49 billion. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. Research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 69.48%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total transaction of $2,210,944.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,002,804.35. The trade was a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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. This represents a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Costello Asset Management INC raised its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% during the 3rd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter valued at about $58,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 58.0% during the fourth quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 138.7% in the third quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 401 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.