The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Purchased by AKO Capital LLP

AKO Capital LLP raised its position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 10.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,172,423 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 114,397 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble comprises approximately 2.7% of AKO Capital LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. AKO Capital LLP’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $196,557,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 229,794,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,524,976,000 after acquiring an additional 1,592,061 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,538,327,000 after purchasing an additional 3,619,466 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,244,463,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,988,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,290,573,000 after purchasing an additional 1,760,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,692,813 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,133,850,000 after buying an additional 312,203 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Procter & Gamble stock opened at $168.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76. The Procter & Gamble Company has a one year low of $153.52 and a one year high of $180.43. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $168.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $169.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $395.92 billion, a PE ratio of 26.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on PG shares. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. The trade was a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total transaction of $3,089,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,274.66. This represents a 44.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Procter & Gamble

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.