Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 0.1% – Should You Sell?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)’s share price dropped 0.1% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $165.92 and last traded at $167.11. Approximately 2,247,935 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 7,087,449 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target 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. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price 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. Eight equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.53.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $399.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.45. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $166.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total transaction of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’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 transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,244,463,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,010,685,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 7.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,538,327,000 after purchasing an additional 3,619,466 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 3,222,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $580,596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,973,757 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,398,120 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,240,294,000 after purchasing an additional 2,846,560 shares in 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.