Empowered Funds LLC Acquires 30,942 Shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) $PG

Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) by 8.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 400,917 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,942 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $57,908,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PG. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1,000.0% during the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 65.1% in the 4th quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1,315.4% during the 4th quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the period. Litman Gregory Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Maseco LLP bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.8%

PG stock opened at $148.66 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $346.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.73, a P/E/G ratio of 7.33 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $147.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $148.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Procter & Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $137.62 and a 1-year high of $167.25.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $21.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.52 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 19.16% and a return on equity of 32.00%. The company’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.54 EPS. Analysts expect that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be given a $1.0885 dividend. This represents a $4.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on PG. Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Procter & Gamble from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $159.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $161.74.

Procter & Gamble Profile

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) is a multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble, P&G has grown into one of the world’s largest producers of branded consumer packaged goods. The company focuses on developing, manufacturing and marketing a broad portfolio of household and personal care products sold to consumers and retailers worldwide.

P&G’s product offering spans several core business categories, including Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric & Home Care, and Baby, Feminine & Family Care.