Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading 0.6% Higher

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)’s stock price was up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $156.98 and last traded at $156.93. Approximately 1,640,503 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 6,780,338 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.95.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PG shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $169.00 to $162.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.53.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $369.05 billion, a PE ratio of 26.22, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $152.80.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.14. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 34.04% and a net margin of 17.60%. The business had revenue of $21.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.48 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.59 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.57%. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 62.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 776 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.11, for a total value of $122,693.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $768,256.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 101,704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.57, for a total value of $15,618,683.28. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 163,428 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,097,637.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 776 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.11, for a total value of $122,693.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,859 shares in the company, valued at $768,256.49. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 279,063 shares of company stock worth $43,187,745 in the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PG. Advantage Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Wyrmwood Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Procter & Gamble

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands.