Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC Sells 174 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC lowered its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 3.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,157 shares of the company’s stock after selling 174 shares during the period. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $837,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advantage Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Wyrmwood Management LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $164.92 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $389.23 billion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.42. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $141.45 and a 12-month high of $169.41. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th were paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 18th. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 855 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.50, for a total transaction of $135,517.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $634,634. The sale was disclosed in a legal 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 on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 855 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.50, for a total transaction of $135,517.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,004 shares in the company, valued at $634,634. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 154,544 shares of company stock valued at $25,413,051 over the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PG shares. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays upped 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. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target 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. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $187.00 price target for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.72.

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.