Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading Up 0.1% – Here’s Why

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) shares shot up 0.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $160.09 and last traded at $158.77. 1,592,035 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 6,076,144 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.56.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $179.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Friday, December 27th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.75.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.4 %

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $169.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $169.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $375.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.03. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 17.07%. The company had revenue of $21.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. Procter & Gamble’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.99, for a total transaction of $2,163,072.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,566 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,954,538.34. This represents a 52.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total transaction of $8,604,804.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 75,439 shares of company stock worth $13,317,460 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PG. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.