Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Stock Price Down 0.7% – Here’s Why

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)’s share price traded down 0.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $173.46 and last traded at $174.25. 1,423,543 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 6,703,558 shares. The stock had previously closed at $175.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $179.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.45.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $170.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.25. The firm has a market cap of $412.09 billion, a PE ratio of 30.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.44.

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. The company had revenue of $21.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.99 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 17.07%. Procter & Gamble’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.31%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Jon R. Moeller sold 7,007 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.65, for a total value of $1,202,751.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 269,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,203,373.80. This represents a 2.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,189,463.68. This trade represents a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 83,080 shares of company stock valued at $14,629,038. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Acorn Creek Capital LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Acorn Creek Capital LLC now owns 2,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 5,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $963,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $616,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,507,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Procter & Gamble

The Procter & Gamble Company engages in the provision of branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. The company operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, SK-II, and Native brands.