Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Position in Procter & Gamble Company (The) $PG

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group trimmed its position in Procter & Gamble by 5.8% in Q4, selling 298,609 shares and leaving it with 4,859,770 shares worth about $696.45 million (0.21% of P&G).
• P&G beat EPS but missed revenue in the latest quarter, reporting $1.59 EPS versus a $1.56 consensus and $21.24 billion in revenue (below estimates) while issuing FY2026 EPS guidance of 6.830–7.090 (analysts foresee ~6.92).
• Dividend hike and notable insider selling: P&G raised its quarterly dividend to $1.0885 ($4.35 annual, ~3.0% yield), and insiders have sold roughly 252,715 shares over the past 90 days, including sizable CEO sales.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,859,770 shares of the company's stock after selling 298,609 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.21% of Procter & Gamble worth $696,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PG. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Saranac Partners Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Corundum Trust Company INC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Marquette Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $37,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $143.50 on Tuesday. Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $137.62 and a 12-month high of $170.99. The company has a market capitalization of $334.15 billion, a PE ratio of 20.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.31 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The firm's 50-day moving average is $149.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $148.62.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.03. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 19.16% and a return on equity of 32.00%. The company had revenue of $21.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.54 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Procter & Gamble has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.830-7.090 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 24th will be issued a $1.0885 dividend. This represents a $4.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 24th. Procter & Gamble's payout ratio is currently 63.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $166.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Procter & Gamble from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $159.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $161.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 36,093 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.33, for a total value of $5,858,976.69. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 34,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,680,576.02. This represents a 50.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ma. Fatima Francisco sold 5,549 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.29, for a total transaction of $917,194.21. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,029 shares in the company, valued at $170,083.41. This trade represents a 84.36% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 252,715 shares of company stock valued at $40,966,904. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Procter & Gamble

Procter & Gamble NYSE: PG is a multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble, P&G has grown into one of the world's largest producers of branded consumer packaged goods. The company focuses on developing, manufacturing and marketing a broad portfolio of household and personal care products sold to consumers and retailers worldwide.

P&G's product offering spans several core business categories, including Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric & Home Care, and Baby, Feminine & Family Care.

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