Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) Shares Sold by HM Payson & Co.

HM Payson & Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 1.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 226,821 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,277 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co.'s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $38,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PG. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the first quarter valued at $111,000. World Investment Advisors grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 6.0% in the first quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 50,913 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,677,000 after purchasing an additional 2,886 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 102.9% in the first quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,724 shares of the company's stock valued at $635,000 after purchasing an additional 1,889 shares during the last quarter. Eukles Asset Management grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.3% in the first quarter. Eukles Asset Management now owns 9,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,626,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 13.8% in the first quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 37,709 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,426,000 after purchasing an additional 4,562 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE PG traded down $0.37 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $160.46. 7,151,619 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,493,797. The business's 50 day moving average is $162.07 and its 200-day moving average is $165.20. Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $156.58 and a 12-month high of $180.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $376.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.47, 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 quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.71.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,965 shares in the company, valued at $8,386,111.70. This represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $1,669,208.40. Following the sale, the insider owned 25,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,995,627.94. This represents a 29.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on PG. Redburn Atlantic lowered Procter & Gamble from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $161.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Procter & Gamble from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $164.00 to $177.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on 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, Erste Group Bank downgraded Procter & Gamble from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $178.45.

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.