Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Stock Price Up 1.7% – Should You Buy?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) was up 1.7% on Monday . The company traded as high as $169.72 and last traded at $169.67. Approximately 2,814,706 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 7,024,717 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.91.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on PG shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.50.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $168.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $168.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $397.92 billion, a PE ratio of 27.02, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $1.0568 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.20%.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,442,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,734,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $820,031,000 after purchasing an additional 608,168 shares during the last quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $201,000. Invst LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.7% in the third quarter. Invst LLC now owns 15,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,752,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,632,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.