Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Cuts Stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC cut its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 64,669 shares of the company’s stock after selling 280 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble accounts for 1.3% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $10,842,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 6,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Mathes Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 595.0% in the fourth quarter. Mathes Company Inc. now owns 24,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,155,000 after buying an additional 21,219 shares during the period. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV now owns 21,866 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,666,000 after purchasing an additional 1,665 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,747,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $795,861,000 after buying an additional 12,572 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,929 shares of the company’s stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on PG shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.53.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In related news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’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 sale, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total transaction of $2,210,944.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,595 shares in the company, valued at $2,002,804.35. This represents a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 151,097 shares of company stock worth $25,635,076. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

PG stock opened at $162.84 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.46. The stock has a market cap of $381.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. 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 current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.17%.

About Procter & Gamble

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.