Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 1.8% – What’s Next?

Shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) traded down 1.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $151.43 and last traded at $153.2410. 8,746,004 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 24% from the average session volume of 11,471,907 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on PG. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $177.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $168.33.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.0%

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $153.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The company has a market capitalization of $349.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 0.37.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $22.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.36 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 32.21% and a net margin of 19.30%.The business’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.88 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 23rd were issued a $1.0568 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 23rd. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 15,169 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.28, for a total transaction of $2,461,625.32. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 44,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,259,595.80. This represents a 25.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 95,903 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.15, for a total value of $14,495,738.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 182,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,601,048.05. The trade was a 34.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 348,618 shares of company stock worth $55,462,643. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 40,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,717,000 after acquiring an additional 13,617 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. Taylor Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,891 shares of the company’s stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $979,000 after purchasing an additional 1,016 shares during the last quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 10.8% in the 2nd quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC now owns 7,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,165,000 after purchasing an additional 714 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 30,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,809,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

About Procter & Gamble

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) is a multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble, P&G has grown into one of the world’s largest producers of branded consumer packaged goods. The company focuses on developing, manufacturing and marketing a broad portfolio of household and personal care products sold to consumers and retailers worldwide.

P&G’s product offering spans several core business categories, including Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric & Home Care, and Baby, Feminine & Family Care.