Confluence Investment Management LLC Sells 4,362 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Confluence Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 3.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 136,618 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,362 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC's holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $23,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,244,463,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,010,685,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% during 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 buying an additional 2,973,757 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,398,120 shares of the company's stock worth $1,240,294,000 after purchasing an additional 2,846,560 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,395,208 shares of the company's stock worth $4,928,107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,703,757 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

Shares of PG traded down $3.35 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $166.54. The stock had a trading volume of 2,705,856 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,290,856. The company's 50-day moving average is $164.35 and its 200 day moving average is $167.40. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $156.58 and a 12-month high of $180.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market capitalization of $390.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a $1.0568 dividend. This is a boost 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.54%. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on PG shares. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 target price on Procter & Gamble and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial decreased 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. Erste Group Bank downgraded Procter & Gamble from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Redburn Partners set a $161.00 target price on Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $178.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.38, for a total transaction of $161,380.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 51,965 shares in the company, valued at $8,386,111.70. The trade was a 1.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $1,669,208.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 25,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,995,627.94. The trade was a 29.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.