Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,115,797 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 53,768 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble comprises approximately 0.6% of Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $187,063,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 933.3% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 95.3% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 207 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.82.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PG opened at $168.85 on Friday. 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 Procter & Gamble Company has a fifty-two week low of $153.52 and a fifty-two week high of $180.43. The stock has a market cap of $395.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $168.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $169.46.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.01%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,829,817.68. This represents a 61.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008. Insiders own 0.18% 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.