ING Groep NV Lowers Stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

ING Groep NV lessened its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 21.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 715,972 shares of the company’s stock after selling 193,757 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble makes up 0.8% of ING Groep NV’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $120,033,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 4.5% during the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 94,109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,300,000 after acquiring an additional 4,035 shares during the period. Strategic Advisors LLC grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 55,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,374,000 after acquiring an additional 1,818 shares during the period. Copley Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter valued at about $668,000. Fortem Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at about $569,000. Finally, Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 2,568 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:PG opened at $166.46 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $390.33 billion, a PE ratio of 26.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $166.13 and a 200-day moving average of $169.44. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $153.52 and a 52 week high of $180.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS 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 company had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.