Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Trading Down 4.8% – Should You Sell?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) shares dropped 4.8% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $162.30 and last traded at $162.84. Approximately 13,171,287 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 85% from the average daily volume of 7,117,588 shares. The stock had previously closed at $171.02.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight 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. According to MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.53.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $166.51 and a 200 day moving average of $169.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $381.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.84 EPS. 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total transaction of $8,604,804.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at $7,189,463.68. This represents a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 151,097 shares of company stock valued at $25,635,076. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PG. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 933.3% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Hoey Investments Inc. boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

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.