MML Investors Services LLC Buys 13,678 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

MML Investors Services LLC raised its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 429,169 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,678 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC's holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $71,950,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company's stock worth $1,442,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 14.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,734,588 shares of the company's stock valued at $820,031,000 after buying an additional 608,168 shares during the period. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $201,000. Invst LLC raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 0.7% in the third quarter. Invst LLC now owns 15,889 shares of the company's stock worth $2,752,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the third quarter worth about $1,632,000. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $181.50.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

NYSE:PG traded down $6.69 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $159.04. 10,490,228 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,162,830. The firm has a market cap of $372.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.32, 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 business's fifty day simple moving average is $168.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $168.43. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $156.58 and a 52 week high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $19.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.42 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.52 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a $1.0568 dividend. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.66%. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is presently 67.20%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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.