Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading 0.9% Higher - Still a Buy?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) shot up 0.9% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $172.51 and last traded at $172.46. 1,285,917 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 6,650,418 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Dbs Bank lowered shares of Procter & Gamble from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Procter & Gamble from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $177.00.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 1.4 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $408.25 billion, a PE ratio of 29.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $170.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $168.51.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $21.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.99 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were given a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.48%.

Insider Activity

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 634 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.65, for a total transaction of $108,826.10. Following the sale, the insider now owns 19,341 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,319,882.65. The trade was a 3.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 1,992 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $338,640.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,783 shares in the company, valued at $2,343,110. This trade represents a 12.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 174,727 shares of company stock valued at $29,694,037. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $33,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.

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