Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Stock Price

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) had its price target hoisted by equities researchers at Barclays from $159.00 to $165.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Barclays‘s price objective suggests a potential downside of 1.71% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.82.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of PG opened at $167.86 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.47. The company has a market cap of $393.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. Procter & Gamble has a one year low of $153.52 and a one year high of $180.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

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

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In related news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,829,817.68. This represents a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PG. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $5,244,463,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at $1,010,685,000. 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 purchasing an additional 3,619,466 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 3,222,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $580,596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,973,757 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 62.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,398,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,240,294,000 after buying an additional 2,846,560 shares in the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.