Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading Down 0.3% - Time to Sell?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 0.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $167.50 and last traded at $168.63. Approximately 3,433,326 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 49% from the average daily volume of 6,676,537 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Piper Sandler started coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $179.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, October 21st. DA Davidson raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $160.00 to $209.00 in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Procter & Gamble to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Eight equities research 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $180.45.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.75. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $170.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.74. The company has a market cap of $395.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.44.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.03. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The company had revenue of $21.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.83 EPS. Procter & Gamble's revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. Procter & Gamble's payout ratio is 69.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 1,992 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $338,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,783 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,343,110. This trade represents a 12.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 634 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.65, for a total value of $108,826.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,341 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,319,882.65. The trade was a 3.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 83,080 shares of company stock valued at $14,629,038 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the third quarter worth $33,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the second quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.