Metis Global Partners LLC Increases Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 115,609 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,082 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble accounts for about 0.6% of Metis Global Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $19,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 416.1% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 1,818,490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,016,000 after buying an additional 1,466,115 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 3.9% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,503,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,432,000 after acquiring an additional 56,583 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,442,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter valued at $181,000. Finally, Pacific Wealth Strategies Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pacific Wealth Strategies Group Inc. now owns 9,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,673,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total value of $3,089,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,274.66. This trade represents a 44.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 1.1 %

PG stock opened at $173.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $407.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12 month low of $153.52 and a 12 month high of $180.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $166.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.54.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The company’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, equities research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.01%.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

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.