Westpac Banking Corp Buys 1,768 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Westpac Banking Corp grew its position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,241 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,768 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $4,399,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 933.3% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 321.7% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 95.3% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 207 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.82.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $169.74 on Thursday. 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 company has a market cap of $398.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12-month low of $153.52 and a 12-month high of $180.43. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $169.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.27.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. Procter & Gamble’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.01%.

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.