Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 0.3%

Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) dropped 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $174.51 and last traded at $175.35. Approximately 777,714 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 6,525,271 shares. The stock had previously closed at $175.88.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on PG shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $157.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. DZ Bank upgraded Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $179.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.79.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.2 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $414.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.65, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $169.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $165.49.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $20.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.69 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.71% and a return on equity of 33.46%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.37 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.97 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th were given a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 19th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Jon R. Moeller sold 37,240 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.89, for a total value of $6,289,463.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 263,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,508,763.93. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Procter & Gamble news, CFO Andre Schulten sold 13,041 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $2,216,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 37,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,325,360. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Jon R. Moeller sold 37,240 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.89, for a total value of $6,289,463.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 263,537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,508,763.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 375,553 shares of company stock valued at $63,829,141. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the second quarter worth $29,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 64.7% during the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

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.