Merit Financial Group LLC Has $34.01 Million Stake in Procter & Gamble Company (The) $PG

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) by 63.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 221,320 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 85,643 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $34,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 40,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,717,000 after acquiring an additional 13,617 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 10.6% during the first quarter. Taylor Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $493,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 0.9% in the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 107,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,324,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the period. Finally, Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 9.6% during the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 312,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,206,000 after purchasing an additional 27,335 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 3,535 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.23, for a total transaction of $538,133.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 34,816 shares in the company, valued at $5,300,039.68. This represents a 9.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 2,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.23, for a total value of $366,569.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 31,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,836,347.10. The trade was a 7.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,308 shares of company stock worth $4,611,852. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Procter & Gamble stock opened at $144.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $336.64 billion, a PE ratio of 21.03, a P/E/G ratio of 4.87 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $146.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $152.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.71. Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $138.14 and a 52-week high of $179.99.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 24th. The company reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.09. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 19.74% and a return on equity of 32.63%. The company had revenue of $22.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.23 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.93 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Procter & Gamble has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.830-7.100 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 24th were paid a $1.0568 dividend. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 24th. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 61.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $152.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Procter & Gamble from $165.00 to $157.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $175.00 target price on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $174.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.38.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) is a multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble, P&G has grown into one of the world’s largest producers of branded consumer packaged goods. The company focuses on developing, manufacturing and marketing a broad portfolio of household and personal care products sold to consumers and retailers worldwide.

P&G’s product offering spans several core business categories, including Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric & Home Care, and Baby, Feminine & Family Care.