The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Stock Holdings Increased by Ballast Inc.

Ballast Inc. raised its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 9.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,893 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,365 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble accounts for about 0.8% of Ballast Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $2,579,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kades & Cheifetz LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 1st quarter worth about $202,000. LCM Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.1% in the first quarter. LCM Capital Management Inc now owns 5,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $925,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 2,805,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $455,114,000 after buying an additional 9,157 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 109,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,765,000 after acquiring an additional 6,412 shares during the period. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 24,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,008,000 after acquiring an additional 1,269 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 9,149 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.72, for a total value of $1,534,470.28. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,168,451.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 9,149 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.72, for a total value of $1,534,470.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,168,451.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sundar G. Raman sold 31,924 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.95, for a total value of $5,329,711.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 19,042 shares in the company, valued at $3,179,061.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 154,544 shares of company stock worth $25,413,051. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

Shares of PG traded up $1.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $167.05. The company had a trading volume of 1,397,606 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,483,390. The company’s 50-day moving average is $166.07 and its 200-day moving average is $159.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $394.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.41. The Procter & Gamble Company has a twelve month low of $141.45 and a twelve month high of $169.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $20.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.43 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.91% and a net margin of 18.00%. The business’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.37 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 19th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 65.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on PG shares. BNP Paribas began coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $187.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com raised Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Barclays increased their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.74.

About Procter & Gamble

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.