Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) Shares Sold by HM Payson & Co.

HM Payson & Co. reduced its position in Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) by 1.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 226,821 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,277 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $38,655,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Navigoe LLC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hoey Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 321.7% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, 10Elms LLP acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE PG opened at $160.72 on Friday. Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $156.58 and a 1-year high of $180.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market capitalization of $376.82 billion, a PE ratio of 25.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $162.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $165.30.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $19.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.42 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.46% and a return on equity of 32.67%. Procter & Gamble’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.52 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a $1.0568 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.38, for a total transaction of $161,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,965 shares in the company, valued at $8,386,111.70. This represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $1,669,208.40. Following the sale, the insider owned 25,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,995,627.94. This trade represents a 29.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $161.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Procter & Gamble from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $200.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Redburn Partners set a $161.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.45.

Procter & Gamble 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.