The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Sold by Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lowered its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 13.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 187,177 shares of the company's stock after selling 30,030 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $31,380,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 229,794,073 shares of the company's stock worth $38,524,976,000 after buying an additional 1,592,061 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,472,195 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,457,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,267,419 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at $5,244,463,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,197,996 shares of the company's stock worth $3,386,194,000 after purchasing an additional 1,209,275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,692,813 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,133,850,000 after acquiring an additional 312,203 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

NYSE:PG traded down $1.00 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $161.26. The stock had a trading volume of 2,178,974 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,123,741. 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 52 week low of $156.58 and a 52 week high of $180.43. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $167.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $168.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $378.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.68, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $19.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.42 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.0568 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.62%. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. Procter & Gamble's payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on PG shares. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Procter & Gamble from $185.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $180.79.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total value of $6,078,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Procter & Gamble 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.