CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Has $546.49 Million Stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 3.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,261,170 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 122,397 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises about 0.9% of CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned approximately 0.14% of Procter & Gamble worth $546,492,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PG. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,244,463,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,010,685,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 3,222,585 shares of the company's stock worth $580,596,000 after buying an additional 2,973,757 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1,709.5% during the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 2,006,298 shares of the company's stock worth $324,825,000 after acquiring an additional 1,895,421 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.2% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 24th. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $181.50.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 2.5 %

NYSE:PG traded up $4.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $170.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,207,665 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,057,471. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $168.39 and a 200-day moving average of $168.51. 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 Procter & Gamble Company has a 1 year low of $153.52 and a 1 year high of $180.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $400.01 billion, a PE 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 released its 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 firm had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.84 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $1.0568 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. Procter & Gamble's payout ratio is currently 67.20%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In related news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were 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 owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total transaction of $3,089,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,785,274.66. The trade was a 44.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.