Procter & Gamble Company (The) $PG Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank trimmed its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.4% in Q4, selling 38,869 shares and leaving it with 1,118,972 shares valued at $160.36 million.
• Company insiders sold 348,618 shares worth about $55.46 million over the last three months, including notable sales by Moses Victor Javier Aguilar and CEO Ma. Fatima Francisco, materially reducing their ownership.
• P&G raised its quarterly dividend to $1.0885 (annualized $4.35, ~3.0% yield; ex-dividend Apr 24, payable May 15), while analysts maintain a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with a $163 price target amid recent price cuts.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lowered its stake in Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,118,972 shares of the company's stock after selling 38,869 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $160,360,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 100.8% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,460,939 shares of the company's stock worth $782,607,000 after purchasing an additional 2,741,924 shares during the period. Amundi raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 26.3% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 10,682,455 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,606,748,000 after purchasing an additional 2,222,560 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 8.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 22,850,345 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,510,955,000 after purchasing an additional 1,752,481 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth $252,853,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 234,630,605 shares of the company's stock worth $36,050,992,000 after buying an additional 1,419,322 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays dropped their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $146.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $158.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $156.00 to $142.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $164.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Dbs Bank raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $163.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 15,169 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.28, for a total value of $2,461,625.32. Following the transaction, the insider owned 44,735 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,259,595.80. This represents a 25.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ma. Fatima Francisco sold 5,549 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.29, for a total value of $917,194.21. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at $170,083.41. This trade represents a 84.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 348,618 shares of company stock worth $55,462,643. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of PG opened at $147.05 on Monday. Procter & Gamble Company has a 1 year low of $137.62 and a 1 year high of $170.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $341.74 billion, a PE ratio of 21.79, a PEG ratio of 5.66 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.72. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $148.90.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $22.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.36 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 19.30% and a return on equity of 32.21%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 24th will be given a $1.0885 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 24th. This represents a $4.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. Procter & Gamble's payout ratio is currently 62.67%.

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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