Argus Investors Counsel Inc. Sells 1,592 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. decreased its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 23.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,238 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,592 shares during the period. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $893,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PG. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 229,794,073 shares of the company's stock worth $38,524,976,000 after buying an additional 1,592,061 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,472,195 shares of the company's stock worth $9,457,000,000 after acquiring an additional 1,267,419 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $5,244,463,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,395,208 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,928,107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,703,757 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,197,996 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,386,194,000 after purchasing an additional 1,209,275 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PG traded down $3.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $160.06. 7,093,816 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,381,974. The firm has a market capitalization of $375.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.49, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43. The Procter & Gamble Company has a one year low of $156.58 and a one year high of $180.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $163.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $166.73.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a $1.0568 dividend. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Procter & Gamble from $185.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Redburn Atlantic lowered Procter & Gamble from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $161.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $164.00 to $177.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $178.86.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

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 transaction of $1,669,208.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 25,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,995,627.94. The trade was a 29.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.38, for a total transaction of $161,380.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 51,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,386,111.70. The trade was a 1.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.