Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG Grows Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 493.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 341,750 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 284,174 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises approximately 1.3% of Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $57,294,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 972.0% during the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% during the 3rd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, DecisionPoint Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 46.7% during the 4th quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 4.8 %

PG opened at $162.84 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $381.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $153.52 and a 52 week high of $180.43. The business’s 50 day moving average is $166.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

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

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 151,097 shares of company stock valued at $25,635,076. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a 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 objective on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated 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 given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus 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.