Mawer Investment Management Ltd. Cuts Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. trimmed its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 25.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,001,866 shares of the company’s stock after selling 695,255 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble comprises about 1.5% of Mawer Investment Management Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. owned about 0.09% of Procter & Gamble worth $335,613,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 933.3% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 95.3% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 207 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC grew 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 buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

PG stock opened at $167.94 on Friday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $153.52 and a 1-year high of $180.43. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $168.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.35. The company has a market capitalization of $393.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.74, a PEG 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.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,274.66. This trade represents a 44.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.