Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Up 1.8% – Still a Buy?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)’s share price rose 1.8% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $173.22 and last traded at $173.63. Approximately 1,720,744 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 7,183,426 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.54.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.42.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $404.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.47, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $166.02 and a 200 day moving average of $169.44.

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

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.01%.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,189,463.68. This trade represents a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 229,794,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,524,976,000 after purchasing an additional 1,592,061 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,472,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,457,000,000 after acquiring an additional 1,267,419 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,244,463,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,395,208 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,928,107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,703,757 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,556,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,599,554,000 after buying an additional 689,282 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.