Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Increases Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,138 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $705,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PG. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,244,463,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Procter & Gamble by 20,758.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,951,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,355,087,000 after purchasing an additional 7,913,335 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $1,010,685,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1,195.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 3,222,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $580,596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,973,757 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,398,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,240,294,000 after buying an additional 2,846,560 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

NYSE PG opened at $162.19 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $163.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $167.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 1 year low of $156.58 and a 1 year high of $180.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $380.25 billion, a PE ratio of 25.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $19.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.42 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. Analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st were paid a $1.0568 dividend. This represents a $4.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 21st. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on PG shares. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $177.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $185.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price target (up previously from $170.00) on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Redburn Partners set a $161.00 price objective on Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $200.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.86.

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.