Procter & Gamble Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PG)

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders purchased 29,788 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 42% compared to the typical daily volume of 21,000 call options.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In related news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total value of $4,581,309.81. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total value of $4,581,309.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,265.43. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.60, for a total transaction of $620,719.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,908,891.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 55,865 shares of company stock worth $9,009,280. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Advantage Trust Co bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Wyrmwood Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 1.0 %

PG opened at $163.24 on Wednesday. Procter & Gamble has a fifty-two week low of $141.45 and a fifty-two week high of $164.32. 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 company has a market capitalization of $385.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $159.82 and a 200-day moving average of $153.91.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 65.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $160.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.76.

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.