Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. Cuts Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. decreased its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 58.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,000 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PG. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% during the third quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter valued at about $58,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 138.7% in the 3rd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 401 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $164.57 on Thursday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $152.06 and a 12-month high of $180.43. The stock has a market cap of $387.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.37, a PEG ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.45. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $169.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $169.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21,657,595.49 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 17.07%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total value of $2,210,944.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,002,804.35. This represents a 52.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on PG. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Friday, December 27th. Hsbc Global Res raised Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $163.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price 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. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.65.

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.