Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. Raises Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,369 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble comprises approximately 1.2% of Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $2,744,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Partners in Financial Planning bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $585,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 432,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,542,000 after buying an additional 32,960 shares during the period. Bcwm LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth $445,000. United Bank grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. United Bank now owns 14,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,406,000 after purchasing an additional 984 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 26,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,947 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

PG stock opened at $167.94 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $393.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $168.60 and its 200 day moving average is $169.31. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $153.52 and a 52 week high of $180.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is 64.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total value of $3,089,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,274.66. This trade represents a 44.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Insiders have sold a total of 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on PG shares. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.82.

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.