Raymond James & Associates Boosts Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,466,016 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 326,928 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates owned 0.15% of Procter & Gamble worth $571,615,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PG. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. now owns 22,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,636,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 120,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,801,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204 shares during the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.0% during the second quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 17,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,935,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.6% during the second quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,374 shares of the company’s stock valued at $886,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Meridian Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the second quarter worth about $2,042,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 8,842 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.90, for a total value of $1,458,045.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,902,451.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 8,842 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.90, for a total value of $1,458,045.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,902,451.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jon R. Moeller sold 72,174 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.01, for a total value of $12,342,475.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 263,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,002,649.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 116,313 shares of company stock valued at $19,703,643 over the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PG traded down $0.03 during trading on Friday, hitting $167.89. 5,640,925 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,681,546. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $166.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $163.26. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $141.45 and a 52-week high of $171.72. The company has a market cap of $396.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $20.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.69 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.46% and a net margin of 17.71%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.37 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.97 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 19th were paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 19th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $179.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $182.00 to $175.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $187.00 price objective on the stock. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.95.

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.