Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Lowers Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC lowered its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 20.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,249 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,118 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $717,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 933.3% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 95.3% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total transaction of $3,089,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,274.66. This represents a 44.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Erste Group Bank upgraded Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.47.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of Procter & Gamble stock opened at $165.73 on Tuesday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $153.52 and a 52 week high of $180.43. The company has a market capitalization of $388.61 billion, a PE ratio of 26.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $168.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.58. 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 posted its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 64.01%.

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.