Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Up 0% – Still a Buy?

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) shares rose 0% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $166.50 and last traded at $166.01. Approximately 949,626 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 3,098,907 shares. The stock had previously closed at $165.98.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PG shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $188.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays downgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $163.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Friday, December 27th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.45.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $170.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.84. The stock has a market cap of $388.89 billion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a PEG ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.75.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $21.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.99 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 17.07%. The company’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th were paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 1,992 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $338,640.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 13,783 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,343,110. This represents a 12.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total transaction of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 75,439 shares of company stock valued at $13,317,460. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PG. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the second quarter worth about $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

The Procter & Gamble Company engages in the provision of branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. The company 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, SK-II, and Native brands.