Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) hit a new 52-week high on Monday after DA Davidson upgraded the stock from a neutral rating to a buy rating. DA Davidson now has a $209.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $160.00. Procter & Gamble traded as high as $178.74 and last traded at $178.21, with a volume of 781518 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $176.28.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on PG. Barclays cut shares of Procter & Gamble from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $163.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. DZ Bank raised Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Procter & Gamble from $188.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total transaction of $2,210,944.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,002,804.35. The trade was a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 634 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.65, for a total transaction of $108,826.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,341 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,319,882.65. The trade was a 3.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,233 shares of company stock valued at $6,024,234 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 1.1 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The business has a 50 day moving average of $170.11 and a 200-day moving average of $168.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $422.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.92, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.42.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $21.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.99 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.83 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 69.31%.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

The Procter & Gamble Company engages in the provision of branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. The company operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, SK-II, and Native brands.