Essex Financial Services Inc. Has $8.33 Million Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Essex Financial Services Inc. reduced its position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 56,848 shares of the company’s stock after selling 140 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises approximately 0.9% of Essex Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $8,331,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,608,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,193,916,000 after buying an additional 3,047,557 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.3% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,313,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,275,616,000 after acquiring an additional 670,862 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,003,260 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,298,184,000 after purchasing an additional 131,339 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,170,305 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,629,299,000 after purchasing an additional 346,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 17.1% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 9,492,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,390,963,000 after purchasing an additional 1,387,539 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:PG traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $163.45. The stock had a trading volume of 3,759,948 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,901,345. The firm has a market cap of $385.76 billion, a PE ratio of 26.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $159.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The Procter & Gamble Company has a twelve month low of $141.45 and a twelve month high of $164.32.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a $1.0065 dividend. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is 65.85%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.60, for a total transaction of $620,719.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,908,891.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Procter & Gamble news, COO Shailesh Jejurikar sold 31,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.90, for a total transaction of $5,049,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 9,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,586,483.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.60, for a total transaction of $620,719.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,908,891.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 86,865 shares of company stock valued at $14,059,180 over the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on PG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Procter & Gamble from $169.00 to $162.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $160.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.76.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.