The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada decreased its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,162,517 shares of the company's stock after selling 119,989 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises approximately 0.6% of Royal Bank of Canada's holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.73% of Procter & Gamble worth $2,877,297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,063 shares of the company's stock worth $1,855,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. R.H. Investment Group LLC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $4,325,000. Floyd Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $793,000. Bright Rock Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $1,676,000. Finally, Community Trust & Investment Co. increased its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 128,085 shares of the company's stock worth $21,473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 25,182 shares in the company, valued at $3,995,627.94. This represents a 29.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 64,520 shares of company stock worth $10,999,268 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Redburn Partners set a $161.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.52.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

PG stock traded up $1.50 during trading on Monday, reaching $164.78. 8,119,774 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,239,918. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $156.58 and a 1-year high of $180.43. The company's fifty day moving average price is $164.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $167.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $386.33 billion, a PE ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. Procter & Gamble's revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st were given a $1.0568 dividend. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 21st. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is 66.98%.

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.