Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading 2.1% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 2.1% during trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $188.00 to $190.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Procter & Gamble traded as high as $176.49 and last traded at $176.45. 2,250,734 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 6,650,751 shares. The stock had previously closed at $172.75.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays downgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $163.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Hsbc Global Res raised Procter & Gamble to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Piper Sandler started coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $179.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 634 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.65, for a total value of $108,826.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,341 shares in the company, valued at $3,319,882.65. The trade was a 3.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andre Schulten sold 13,041 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $2,216,970.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 37,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,325,360. This represents a 25.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 160,693 shares of company stock valued at $27,311,345. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the second quarter worth $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $170.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $168.54. The stock has a market cap of $415.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 17.07%. The business had revenue of $21.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.99 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.83 EPS. Procter & Gamble's quarterly revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. Procter & Gamble's dividend payout ratio is 69.48%.

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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