HighTower Advisors LLC Buys 29,229 Shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG)

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.2%, now owning approximately 2.54 million shares valued at around $432.9 million, making it the firm's 22nd largest position.
• Procter & Gamble recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.0568, which will be payable on August 15th, yielding approximately 2.7% with a payout ratio of 65%.
• Analysts have generally maintained a positive view on Procter & Gamble, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $175.88, despite some recent reductions in target prices.

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 1.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,540,275 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,229 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble accounts for about 0.6% of HighTower Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. HighTower Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Procter & Gamble worth $432,914,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PG. Cladis Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Cladis Investment Advisory LLC now owns 4,807 shares of the company's stock worth $806,000 after buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 27,690 shares of the company's stock worth $4,642,000 after buying an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 13.8% in the first quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 37,709 shares of the company's stock worth $6,426,000 after buying an additional 4,562 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 6.0% in the first quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 50,913 shares of the company's stock worth $8,677,000 after buying an additional 2,886 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 120.7% in the first quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 364,378 shares of the company's stock worth $62,098,000 after buying an additional 199,258 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group set a $180.00 target price on Procter & Gamble and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Evercore ISI reiterated an "in-line" rating and issued a $170.00 target price (down from $190.00) on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $173.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $170.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $175.88.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $155.03 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.70. The business's 50 day moving average price is $158.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $163.60. Procter & Gamble Company has a fifty-two week low of $149.91 and a fifty-two week high of $180.43. The company has a market cap of $363.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.81, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.37.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.06. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 18.95%. The company had revenue of $20.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Procter & Gamble's revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $1.0568 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is 64.98%.

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.

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