Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Lowered to "Hold" Rating by Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

PG has been the subject of several other research reports. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 price target on Procter & Gamble and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Procter & Gamble from $185.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.52.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE PG traded up $0.27 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $159.10. 2,399,551 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,147,183. The company has a 50 day moving average of $167.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $167.85. Procter & Gamble has a 12 month low of $156.58 and a 12 month high of $180.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $373.02 billion, a PE ratio of 25.34, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.01. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The company had revenue of $19.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.52 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Procter & Gamble will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $1.0568 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.66%. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is 66.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $1,669,208.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 25,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,995,627.94. The trade was a 29.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,829,817.68. The trade was a 61.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 64,520 shares of company stock valued at $10,999,268 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PG. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,244,463,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 20,758.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,951,456 shares of the company's stock worth $1,355,087,000 after buying an additional 7,913,335 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at $1,010,685,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 3,222,585 shares of the company's stock worth $580,596,000 after acquiring an additional 2,973,757 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,398,120 shares of the company's stock worth $1,240,294,000 after acquiring an additional 2,846,560 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Procter & Gamble

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.