Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Lowers Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC reduced its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 5.8% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,905 shares of the company’s stock after selling 239 shares during the quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $644,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth $17,696,000. Campbell Wealth Management grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Campbell Wealth Management now owns 1,988 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. now owns 26,592 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,897,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 29.0% in the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 43,202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,010,000 after acquiring an additional 9,716 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 115,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,858,000 after acquiring an additional 15,599 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:PG traded down $0.98 during trading on Friday, hitting $169.17. The stock had a trading volume of 4,771,267 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,597,829. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12 month low of $141.45 and a 12 month high of $171.89. The company has a market capitalization of $399.26 billion, a PE ratio of 27.64, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $167.29 and its 200 day moving average is $163.65.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.71% and a return on equity of 33.46%. The firm had revenue of $20.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.37 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th were issued a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 19th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 65.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $189.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $182.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com cut Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $187.00 price objective on the stock. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.95.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 8,842 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.90, for a total transaction of $1,458,045.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,537 shares in the company, valued at $1,902,451.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 8,842 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.90, for a total value of $1,458,045.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,902,451.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Ma. Fatima Francisco sold 96,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $16,320,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,721 shares in the company, valued at $2,332,570. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 223,259 shares of company stock valued at $37,948,393 in the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Procter & Gamble Profile

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It 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, and SK-II brands.