Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC Takes Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 34,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,725,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PG. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 933.3% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Hoey Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 321.7% in the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Atlantic Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 95.3% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 207 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on PG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Redburn Partners set a $161.00 price target on Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Redburn Atlantic lowered Procter & Gamble from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $161.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 price objective on Procter & Gamble and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have given 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 a consensus price target of $178.52.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of Procter & Gamble stock traded up $0.87 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $163.28. 7,100,112 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,224,518. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $164.69 and a 200-day moving average of $167.32. The company has a market cap of $382.82 billion, a PE ratio of 26.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12 month low of $156.58 and a 12 month high of $180.43.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st were paid a $1.0568 dividend. This is a boost 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 2.59%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 21st. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,829,817.68. This represents a 61.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 64,520 shares of company stock worth $10,999,268. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.