Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Position in Procter & Gamble Company (The) $PG

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,859,770 shares of the company’s stock after selling 298,609 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $696,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Ma. Fatima Francisco sold 5,549 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.29, for a total value of $917,194.21. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $170,083.41. This represents a 84.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 15,169 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.28, for a total transaction of $2,461,625.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 44,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,259,595.80. The trade was a 25.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 252,715 shares of company stock valued at $40,966,904. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $166.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $146.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $179.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.06.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

NYSE:PG opened at $143.50 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company has a market cap of $334.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.98, a P/E/G ratio of 6.31 and a beta of 0.41. Procter & Gamble Company has a fifty-two week low of $137.62 and a fifty-two week high of $170.99. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $149.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $148.62.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.03. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 19.16% and a return on equity of 32.00%. The company had revenue of $21.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.54 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Procter & Gamble has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.830-7.090 EPS. Analysts expect that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.92 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 24th will be given a $1.0885 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 24th. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. This represents a $4.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.60%.

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.