Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Upgraded at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on PG. Morgan Stanley set a $175.00 price target on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $177.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $157.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.33.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 1.4%

PG opened at $160.77 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $373.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.82, a P/E/G ratio of 5.27 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Procter & Gamble has a twelve month low of $137.62 and a twelve month high of $179.99. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $149.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $150.70.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $22.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.36 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 19.30% and a return on equity of 32.21%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. Procter & Gamble has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.830-7.090 EPS. Analysts predict that Procter & Gamble will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Friday, January 23rd were paid a dividend of $1.0568 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 23rd. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is currently 62.67%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 36,093 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.33, for a total transaction of $5,858,976.69. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 34,994 shares in the company, valued at $5,680,576.02. This represents a 50.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jon R. Moeller sold 162,232 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.45, for a total transaction of $26,354,588.40. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 319,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,884,093.25. The trade was a 33.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 341,260 shares of company stock valued at $54,256,985. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. raised its stake 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 during the period. Park Square Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 65.1% during the 4th quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Procter & Gamble by 1,315.4% in 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. Finally, Litman Gregory Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.