GWN Securities Inc. Takes Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

GWN Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 19,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,127,000. Procter & Gamble comprises 0.8% of GWN Securities Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,010,685,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 7.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,538,327,000 after acquiring an additional 3,619,466 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 3,222,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $580,596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,973,757 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,988,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,290,573,000 after purchasing an additional 1,760,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $301,950,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PG. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.47.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of Procter & Gamble stock opened at $168.20 on Friday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $153.52 and a 52 week high of $180.43. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $167.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $394.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.78, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.39%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio 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.