Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 1.4% - Here's What Happened

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 1.4% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $167.10 and last traded at $167.20. Approximately 1,298,709 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 8,033,047 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.57.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Tuesday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $181.50.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 1.5 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $168.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $168.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $387.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.34, a PEG 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 analysts' expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.0568 per share. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is 67.20%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were 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 approximately $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 22,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,829,817.68. This represents a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA now owns 236,616 shares of the company's stock worth $38,833,000 after acquiring an additional 2,179 shares during the period. Strategic Advisors LLC increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 55,912 shares of the company's stock worth $9,374,000 after acquiring an additional 1,818 shares during the last quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter valued at about $668,000. Fortem Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $569,000. Finally, Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. now owns 123,853 shares of the company's stock worth $20,764,000 after purchasing an additional 2,568 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

About Procter & Gamble

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.