Franklin Resources Inc. Has $3.39 Billion Stock Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,197,996 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,209,275 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble makes up about 0.9% of Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.86% of Procter & Gamble worth $3,386,194,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA now owns 236,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,833,000 after acquiring an additional 2,179 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 55,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,374,000 after purchasing an additional 1,818 shares in the last quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth $668,000. Fortem Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at $569,000. Finally, Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. now owns 123,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,764,000 after buying an additional 2,568 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total value of $3,089,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,785,274.66. This represents a 44.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on PG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.82.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

PG opened at $167.94 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $393.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.74, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $168.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.31. The Procter & Gamble Company has a twelve month low of $153.52 and a twelve month high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results 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. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

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

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.