Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading 0.6% Higher – Still a Buy?

Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) traded up 0.6% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $170.43 and last traded at $170.61. 1,541,982 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 6,882,531 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.58.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on PG shares. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.53.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 4.8 %

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 cap of $381.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $166.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.40.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 64.17%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total transaction of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 11,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,002,804.35. This represents a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 151,097 shares of company stock worth $25,635,076. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 933.3% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Navigoe LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Hoey Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 321.7% in the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.