Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Cuts Stock Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,015,900 shares of the company's stock after selling 48,523 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble makes up approximately 0.6% of Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $170,316,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in PG. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth $5,244,463,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth $1,010,685,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 2,846,560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,395,208 shares of the company's stock worth $4,928,107,000 after acquiring an additional 2,703,757 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Redburn Partners set a $161.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.52.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.2%

Procter & Gamble stock opened at $165.05 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $164.22 and its 200-day moving average is $167.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1 year low of $156.58 and a 1 year high of $180.43. The company has a market cap of $386.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.28, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.01. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The company had revenue of $19.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.42 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.52 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st were given a $1.0568 dividend. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.98%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 25,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,995,627.94. The trade was a 29.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of the business'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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 51,965 shares in the company, valued at $8,386,111.70. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 64,520 shares of company stock worth $10,999,268. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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