Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Sells 1,150,496 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lowered its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 20.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,425,401 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,150,496 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned approximately 0.19% of Procter & Gamble worth $741,918,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on PG. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $181.50.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of PG stock traded up $4.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $170.59. The stock had a trading volume of 7,207,665 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,057,471. The firm has a market cap of $400.01 billion, a PE ratio of 27.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43. 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 one year low of $153.52 and a one year high of $180.43. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $168.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $168.51.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $1.0568 dividend. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. 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. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is 67.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.