Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Sells 1,498 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc cut its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 15,479 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,498 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $2,268,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PG. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Wyrmwood Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 636.6% during the 4th quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 302 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 206.6% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:PG traded up $1.12 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $161.66. 3,335,651 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,910,303. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $141.45 and a 1-year high of $163.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $159.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $153.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market cap of $380.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.33, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.44.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.10. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 33.77%. The company had revenue of $20.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.37 EPS. Procter & Gamble’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 101,704 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.57, for a total transaction of $15,618,683.28. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 163,428 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,097,637.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Ma. Fatima Francisco sold 74,443 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.30, for a total value of $11,412,111.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,160.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 101,704 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.57, for a total transaction of $15,618,683.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 163,428 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,097,637.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 279,918 shares of company stock valued at $43,323,263 in the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on PG. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.88.

Procter & Gamble Profile

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands.