The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Purchased by Inspire Advisors LLC

Inspire Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,973 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,538,327,000 after acquiring an additional 3,619,466 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,556,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,599,554,000 after buying an additional 689,282 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,988,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,290,573,000 after buying an additional 1,760,214 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,692,813 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,133,850,000 after buying an additional 312,203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,881,907 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,830,252,000 after buying an additional 459,437 shares in the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

NYSE PG opened at $168.35 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $394.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $167.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.83. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $153.52 and a 1-year high of $180.43.

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

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 64.01%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total value of $3,089,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,274.66. This trade represents a 44.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.47.

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.