The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Stock Position Increased by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,769,286 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 107,124 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $259,271,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 106.2% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 6,134,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $898,943,000 after acquiring an additional 3,159,796 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,608,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,193,916,000 after acquiring an additional 3,047,557 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 13,850.3% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,747,379 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,601,000 after acquiring an additional 2,727,685 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 235.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,231,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $473,475,000 after acquiring an additional 2,268,805 shares during the period. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $246,412,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.1 %

PG stock opened at $163.38 on Thursday. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $141.45 and a 52-week high of $164.32. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $159.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $385.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.10. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 33.91%. The firm had revenue of $20.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 65.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PG has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $156.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 target price on the stock. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $169.00 to $162.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.76.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 22,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total transaction of $3,549,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,943,835.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Procter & Gamble news, COO Shailesh Jejurikar sold 31,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.90, for a total value of $5,049,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 9,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,586,483.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 22,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total transaction of $3,549,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,943,835.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 86,865 shares of company stock valued at $14,059,180. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.