Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC Decreases Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,634 shares of the company’s stock after selling 129 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble makes up 1.2% of Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $7,436,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 933.3% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hoey Investments Inc. increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:PG opened at $162.68 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $381.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $163.67 and its 200-day moving average is $167.08. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $156.58 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.01. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The company had revenue of $19.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.42 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st were given a dividend of $1.0568 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.60%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 price target on Procter & Gamble and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Procter & Gamble from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $177.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $161.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $1,669,208.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,995,627.94. This trade represents a 29.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.38, for a total value of $161,380.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 51,965 shares in the company, valued at $8,386,111.70. The trade was a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.