Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 0.2% – Time to Sell?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) fell 0.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $167.96 and last traded at $168.36. 1,308,607 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 6,464,440 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.71.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PG. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.82.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.5 %

The company has a market cap of $393.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.74, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $168.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total value of $6,078,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,829,817.68. The trade was a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA now owns 236,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,833,000 after acquiring an additional 2,179 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 55,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,374,000 after purchasing an additional 1,818 shares in the last quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter valued at $668,000. Fortem Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $569,000. Finally, Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. now owns 123,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,764,000 after buying an additional 2,568 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

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.