The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Purchased by Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 848,814 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,890 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble accounts for 2.7% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $142,304,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PG. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 4.5% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 94,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,300,000 after acquiring an additional 4,035 shares in the last quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the third quarter worth $668,000. Fortem Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth $569,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,898,569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $484,583,000 after buying an additional 201,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.4% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 185,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,065,000 after buying an additional 6,077 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total value of $2,210,944.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,002,804.35. The trade was a 52.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 151,097 shares of company stock worth $25,635,076 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

NYSE PG opened at $167.99 on Monday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a twelve month low of $153.52 and a twelve month high of $180.43. 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 stock has a market cap of $393.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.75, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $167.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.42.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. Procter & Gamble’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 64.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PG. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price objective 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 issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.53.

Procter & Gamble 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.