The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Sold by WASHINGTON TRUST Co

WASHINGTON TRUST Co lessened its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 83,168 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,980 shares during the period. WASHINGTON TRUST Co’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $13,943,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PG. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 416.1% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 1,818,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,016,000 after buying an additional 1,466,115 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.5% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 1,393,443 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,344,000 after acquiring an additional 47,551 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB grew its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,503,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,432,000 after purchasing an additional 56,583 shares in the last quarter. Greenup Street Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Greenup Street Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 83,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,517,000 after acquiring an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

PG opened at $162.84 on Friday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a twelve month low of $153.52 and a twelve month high of $180.43. The stock has a market cap of $381.84 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The business’s 50 day moving average is $166.73 and its 200-day moving average is $169.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

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

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,189,463.68. This trade represents a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 151,097 shares of company stock worth $25,635,076. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PG shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted 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. Barclays upped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.53.

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.