The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Purchased by W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.

W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 14.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,511 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,074 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble accounts for about 1.0% of W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $1,247,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 5.1% during the third quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. now owns 32,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,732,000 after acquiring an additional 1,582 shares during the period. Beach Investment Counsel Inc. PA lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 8.6% during the third quarter. Beach Investment Counsel Inc. PA now owns 46,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,733,000 after purchasing an additional 3,637 shares during the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.2% in the third quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 14,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. VeraBank N.A. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. VeraBank N.A. now owns 13,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,957,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arlington Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 160.2% in the 3rd quarter. Arlington Partners LLC now owns 21,635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,156,000 after buying an additional 13,319 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PG. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $156.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Argus increased their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.76.

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 transaction of $4,581,309.81. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,908,891.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total transaction of $4,581,309.81. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,265.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 86,865 shares of company stock worth $14,059,180 in the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PG traded up $0.62 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $164.46. 5,581,692 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,941,715. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $160.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $154.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.69. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $141.45 and a 52-week high of $164.71. The company has a market capitalization of $388.15 billion, a PE ratio of 26.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.37 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.85%.

About Procter & Gamble

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.