Merit Financial Group LLC Sells 12,462 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Merit Financial Group LLC decreased its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 64,540 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,462 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $9,458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PG. Wyrmwood Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 636.6% during the fourth quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 302 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of PG traded up $0.62 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $164.46. 5,577,808 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,918,823. The Procter & Gamble Company has a fifty-two week low of $141.45 and a fifty-two week high of $164.71. The business has a 50-day moving average of $159.94 and a 200-day moving average of $154.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $388.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.10. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.91% and a net margin of 18.00%. The firm had revenue of $20.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.43 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.37 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current 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 paid a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 65.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PG shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price target for the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.