Verity & Verity LLC Has $13.44 Million Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Verity & Verity LLC lifted its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 13.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 80,161 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,398 shares during the quarter. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $13,439,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PG. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% in the third quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the second quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 58.0% in the fourth quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

NYSE:PG opened at $161.35 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $169.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $379.98 billion, a PE ratio of 27.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.45. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $146.28 and a 12-month high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.03. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 17.07%. The business had revenue of $21.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.83 EPS. Procter & Gamble’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.48%.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on PG shares. Hsbc Global Res raised Procter & Gamble to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target for the company. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued 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 a consensus price target of $179.65.

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.