Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC Lowers Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC reduced its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 12.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,193 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,300 shares during the quarter. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $1,541,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 416.1% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 1,818,490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,016,000 after purchasing an additional 1,466,115 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.9% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,503,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,432,000 after purchasing an additional 56,583 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,442,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.1% in the third quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 4,143 shares of the company’s stock valued at $718,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tempus Wealth Planning LLC lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 23.0% in the third quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE:PG opened at $167.26 on Friday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a twelve month low of $153.52 and a twelve month high of $180.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $166.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $169.43. The company has a market cap of $392.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.45.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 64.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.53.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were 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 owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,189,463.68. This trade represents a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.