Essential Planning LLC. Takes $11.87 Million Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Essential Planning LLC. purchased a new position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 69,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,873,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA now owns 236,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,833,000 after acquiring an additional 2,179 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 55,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,374,000 after acquiring an additional 1,818 shares in the last quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the third quarter worth $668,000. Fortem Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth $569,000. Finally, Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. now owns 123,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,764,000 after acquiring an additional 2,568 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the business’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 sale, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 quarter. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PG. 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. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.47.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:PG opened at $173.07 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $405.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $153.52 and a 1-year high of $180.43. The company’s fifty day moving average is $167.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter 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 issued a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.01%.

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.