Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 11,739 shares of the company’s stock after selling 93 shares during the period. Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $1,720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. KFG Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $991,000 after buying an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 9.0% in the third quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV now owns 2,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 62,593 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,130,000 after purchasing an additional 10,719 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 241,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,233,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Blueprint LLC raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 1.3% in the third quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 56,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,210,000 after acquiring an additional 742 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Argus upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Procter & Gamble in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other news, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.60, for a total transaction of $620,719.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,908,891.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total transaction of $4,581,309.81. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,858,265.43. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 3,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.60, for a total transaction of $620,719.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,908,891.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 100,865 shares of company stock worth $16,029,280 in the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 0.8 %

Procter & Gamble stock traded down $1.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $161.29. 5,659,784 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,820,118. The company has a market cap of $380.67 billion, a PE ratio of 26.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.44. The Procter & Gamble Company has a fifty-two week low of $141.45 and a fifty-two week high of $164.32. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $159.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $153.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.10. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 33.91%. The business had revenue of $20.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 65.85%.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands.