Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Stock Price Up 0.5% – Here’s What Happened

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) shares shot up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $161.75 and last traded at $161.35. 7,218,206 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 28% from the average session volume of 5,628,331 shares. The stock had previously closed at $160.50.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PG. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $176.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group lowered their target price on Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.65.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $379.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.82, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $169.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.46.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $21.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.99 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 33.25%. Procter & Gamble’s quarterly revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 1,992 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $338,640.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,783 shares in the company, valued at $2,343,110. The trade was a 12.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,189,463.68. This represents a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 75,439 shares of company stock worth $13,317,460. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PG. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 1,135.1% in the 2nd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 20,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,412,000 after buying an additional 19,013 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 222,592 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,710,000 after acquiring an additional 18,855 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 9.8% during the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 7,863 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,297,000 after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 112,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,487,000 after acquiring an additional 9,415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kowal Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Kowal Investment Group LLC now owns 15,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,614,000 after buying an additional 744 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

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.