Avantax Planning Partners Inc. Has $8.90 Million Stake in Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG)

Avantax Planning Partners Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 4.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,214 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,171 shares during the quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc.'s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $8,898,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,244,463,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 20,758.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,951,456 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,355,087,000 after acquiring an additional 7,913,335 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $1,010,685,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 2,973,757 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 62.5% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the company from $164.00 to $177.00 in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of Procter & Gamble from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $161.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial lowered 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $178.45.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 0.3%

Procter & Gamble stock traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $160.72. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,999,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,490,519. Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $156.58 and a 52-week high of $180.43. The company has a market cap of $376.82 billion, a PE ratio of 25.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The firm's 50 day moving average is $162.10 and its 200 day moving average is $165.37.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.01. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.46% and a return on equity of 32.67%. The firm had revenue of $19.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a dividend of $1.0568 per share. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.63%. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 21st. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.38, for a total value of $161,380.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,386,111.70. This represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $1,669,208.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 25,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,995,627.94. This trade represents a 29.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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.