Harbor Investment Advisory LLC Boosts Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 22,330 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $3,744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,538,327,000 after purchasing an additional 3,619,466 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,556,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,599,554,000 after acquiring an additional 689,282 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 21,632,054 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,567,556,000 after acquiring an additional 122,190 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,988,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,290,573,000 after purchasing an additional 1,760,214 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,380,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,183,522,000 after purchasing an additional 830,476 shares in the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

PG opened at $161.77 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $169.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $380.96 billion, a PE ratio of 27.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.45. 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 Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $146.28 and a 12-month high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 69.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,189,463.68. This represents a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total value of $2,210,944.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,595 shares in the company, valued at $2,002,804.35. This trade represents a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 73,447 shares of company stock valued at $12,978,820. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $176.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $167.00 to $161.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI increased their price target 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. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.65.

Procter & Gamble Profile

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.