The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) is Meyer Handelman Co.’s 3rd Largest Position

Meyer Handelman Co. reduced its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 553,621 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,312 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble makes up approximately 3.3% of Meyer Handelman Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $94,348,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 229,794,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,524,976,000 after buying an additional 1,592,061 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,472,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,457,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,267,419 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $5,244,463,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,395,208 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,928,107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,703,757 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,197,996 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,386,194,000 after purchasing an additional 1,209,275 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE:PG opened at $169.92 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $164.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $167.39. The company has a market capitalization of $398.38 billion, a PE ratio of 27.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $156.58 and a 52-week high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.01. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The company had revenue of $19.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.42 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st were paid a $1.0568 dividend. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 21st. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 10,520 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $1,669,208.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 25,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,995,627.94. This trade represents a 29.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jennifer L. Davis sold 1,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.38, for a total value of $161,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 51,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,386,111.70. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Procter & Gamble from $200.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Erste Group Bank lowered Procter & Gamble from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Redburn Partners set a $161.00 target price on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.52.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.