Avalon Trust Co Cuts Stock Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Avalon Trust Co trimmed its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,434 shares of the company’s stock after selling 126 shares during the period. Avalon Trust Co’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $1,089,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PG. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,554,729 shares of the company’s stock valued at $231,221,000 after acquiring an additional 49,339 shares in the last quarter. TCG Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Procter & Gamble by 129.7% during the 4th quarter. TCG Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,625,000 after buying an additional 10,114 shares during the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 30,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,385,000 after buying an additional 1,664 shares during the period. AJOVista LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Provence Wealth Management Group grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Provence Wealth Management Group now owns 5,475 shares of the company’s stock worth $802,000 after acquiring an additional 853 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE PG traded up $0.62 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $164.46. 5,581,692 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,941,715. The stock has a market capitalization of $388.15 billion, a PE ratio of 26.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.43. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $141.45 and a 52-week high of $164.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.69. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $160.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.17.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $20.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.43 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 33.91%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.37 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 65.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on PG shares. Barclays upped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.60, for a total value of $620,719.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,908,891.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Procter & Gamble news, COO Shailesh Jejurikar sold 31,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.90, for a total value of $5,049,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 9,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,586,483.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.60, for a total value of $620,719.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,908,891.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 86,865 shares of company stock valued at $14,059,180. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

About Procter & Gamble

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands.