Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Up 1.3% – Here’s Why

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) shot up 1.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $163.28 and last traded at $162.28. 2,910,365 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average session volume of 6,955,345 shares. The stock had previously closed at $160.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on PG. Erste Group Bank upgraded Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price 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. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.00.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $372.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.29, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $168.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its 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. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities 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. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is 64.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble 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 transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % 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 valued at $23,988,008 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.0% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,442,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,734,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $820,031,000 after acquiring an additional 608,168 shares during the period. United Bank raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.7% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 13,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth $201,000. Finally, Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 5.4% in the third quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 13,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,333,000 after purchasing an additional 686 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.