Bright Rock Capital Management LLC Buys 10,000 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Bright Rock Capital Management LLC grew its stake in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 100.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the quarter. Bright Rock Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $3,408,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PG. Willis Investment Counsel boosted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 77.6% during the 1st quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 157,290 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,805,000 after acquiring an additional 68,750 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Trust boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 2.3% in the first quarter. Legacy Trust now owns 4,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $821,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Thomasville National Bank grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 15,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,614,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 205,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,061,000 after buying an additional 12,449 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 1,166,917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $198,866,000 after buying an additional 28,605 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Procter & Gamble from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Procter & Gamble from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $177.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $161.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.86.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of PG opened at $163.10 on Friday. 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. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $163.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $166.95. The company has a market capitalization of $382.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st were issued 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 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 66.98%.

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.