Laraway Financial Advisors Inc Increases Stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Laraway Financial Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,580 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 310 shares during the period. Laraway Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 933.3% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Hoey Investments Inc. increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Atlantic Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Procter & Gamble by 95.3% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:PG opened at $157.73 on Monday. 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 company has a market cap of $369.80 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $156.30 and a 52 week high of $180.43. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $165.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $167.54.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its earnings results 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. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The company had revenue of $19.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.0568 per share. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.68%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total value of $6,078,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,829,817.68. This represents a 61.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 51,965 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,386,111.70. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 64,520 shares of company stock worth $10,999,268 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $181.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.52.

Procter & Gamble 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.