Saratoga Research & Investment Management Sells 3,878 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Saratoga Research & Investment Management trimmed its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 166,693 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,878 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble makes up approximately 1.4% of Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $27,946,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PG. Partners in Financial Planning purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at $585,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 432,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,542,000 after acquiring an additional 32,960 shares during the period. Bcwm LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $445,000. United Bank grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. United Bank now owns 14,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,406,000 after purchasing an additional 984 shares during the period. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 26,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,947 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on PG. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 24th. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.82.

Insider Activity

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total value of $3,089,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,274.66. This represents a 44.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

Shares of Procter & Gamble stock opened at $167.94 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $393.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. 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’s fifty day moving average is $168.60 and its 200 day moving average is $169.31. The Procter & Gamble Company has a one year low of $153.52 and a one year high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 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 up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.01%.

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.