The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Position Reduced by C WorldWide Group Holding A S

C WorldWide Group Holding A S decreased its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 11.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,322,587 shares of the company’s stock after selling 299,619 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble accounts for about 4.6% of C WorldWide Group Holding A S’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. C WorldWide Group Holding A S’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $340,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,608,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,193,916,000 after buying an additional 3,047,557 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.3% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,313,150 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,275,616,000 after purchasing an additional 670,862 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,003,260 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,298,184,000 after purchasing an additional 131,339 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.2% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,170,305 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,629,299,000 after buying an additional 346,925 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 17.1% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 9,492,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,390,963,000 after acquiring an additional 1,387,539 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total value of $4,581,309.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total value of $4,581,309.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ma. Fatima Francisco sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.00, for a total value of $7,020,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $151,788. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 100,865 shares of company stock worth $16,029,280. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on PG shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Argus boosted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group upped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.76.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.8 %

PG traded down $1.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $161.29. The stock had a trading volume of 5,659,784 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,820,118. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $159.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $153.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $380.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.44. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $141.45 and a 52 week high of $164.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.69.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.85%.

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.