Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading 0.1% Higher – Still a Buy?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)’s stock price shot up 0.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $167.29 and last traded at $166.32. 1,300,441 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 7,464,125 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.19.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on PG. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.53.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.9 %

The stock has a market cap of $389.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $168.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76.

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

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.17%.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total value of $2,210,944.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,002,804.35. This represents a 52.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 151,097 shares of company stock valued at $25,635,076. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 972.0% during the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% in the third quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, DecisionPoint Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.