Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC Grows Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,950 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 185 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble makes up approximately 0.7% of Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $1,500,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 972.0% in the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Costello Asset Management INC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% during the third quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DecisionPoint Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group decreased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays raised their target price on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.53.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total transaction 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 $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the transaction, the insider now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:PG opened at $170.17 on Friday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $153.52 and a 12-month high of $180.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $399.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.45.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued 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 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 the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. Procter & Gamble’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is currently 64.17%.

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.