Liberty Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Liberty Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,344 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. Liberty Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $1,231,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PG. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,010,685,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 7.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,538,327,000 after acquiring an additional 3,619,466 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 3,222,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $580,596,000 after acquiring an additional 2,973,757 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,988,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,290,573,000 after buying an additional 1,760,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $301,950,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total transaction of $3,089,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,274.66. This trade represents a 44.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on PG shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.47.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 1.8 %

PG opened at $173.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $167.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.84. The company has a market cap of $405.83 billion, a PE ratio of 27.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1 year low of $153.52 and a 1 year high of $180.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The company had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. Procter & Gamble’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.01%.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.