Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Price Target Cut to $161.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) had its price target reduced by Stifel Nicolaus from $167.00 to $161.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on PG. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $176.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, 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 research report on Thursday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.65.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $161.35 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $379.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.45. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $169.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Procter & Gamble has a 12-month low of $146.28 and a 12-month high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $21.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.99 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Procter & Gamble will post 6.93 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 1,992 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $338,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,783 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,343,110. The trade was a 12.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 75,439 shares of company stock worth $13,317,460. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the second quarter worth $28,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Costello Asset Management INC grew its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% in the 3rd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble in the second quarter worth approximately $58,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.