Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super Takes $31.78 Million Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super acquired a new stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 189,534 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,775,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 933.3% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 95.3% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 207 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,274.66. This represents a 44.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 2.5 %

Procter & Gamble stock traded up $4.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $170.59. The company had a trading volume of 7,207,665 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,060,506. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $153.52 and a 1-year high of $180.43. 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's 50 day simple moving average is $168.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $168.52. The stock has a market cap of $400.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a $1.0568 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. 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. Barclays restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $181.50.

Procter & Gamble 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.