Essex LLC Has $3.48 Million Stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Essex LLC lessened its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 20,755 shares of the company’s stock after selling 937 shares during the period. Essex LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $3,479,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 7.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,538,327,000 after buying an additional 3,619,466 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,556,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,599,554,000 after acquiring an additional 689,282 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,988,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,290,573,000 after purchasing an additional 1,760,214 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 4.7% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,380,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,183,522,000 after purchasing an additional 830,476 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,422,470 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,844,442,000 after purchasing an additional 105,734 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

NYSE PG opened at $167.99 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $167.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.40. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $153.52 and a 12-month high of $180.43. The company has a market cap of $393.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.75, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.17%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. This represents 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, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total transaction of $2,210,944.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,595 shares in the company, valued at $2,002,804.35. This trade represents a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 151,097 shares of company stock worth $25,635,076 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on PG. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.53.

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.