Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Up 0.5% – Still a Buy?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)’s share price was up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $174.65 and last traded at $172.77. Approximately 1,279,739 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 7,096,625 shares. The stock had previously closed at $171.97.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased 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 note on Thursday, January 16th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.11.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $166.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $407.63 billion, a PE ratio of 27.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.45.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion during 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total value of $3,089,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,785,274.66. This represents a 44.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through 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 value of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.9% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,503,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,432,000 after acquiring an additional 56,583 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,442,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 28,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,958,000 after purchasing an additional 1,579 shares during the period. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the third quarter worth $201,000. Finally, Campbell Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter valued at about $266,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.