The Procter & Gamble Company (PG) To Go Ex-Dividend on April 18th

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 9th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a dividend of 1.0065 per share on Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This is an increase from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94.

Procter & Gamble has raised its dividend by an average of 6.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 68 consecutive years. Procter & Gamble has a payout ratio of 54.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Procter & Gamble to earn $6.93 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 54.3%.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE:PG opened at $155.45 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $159.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $152.70. Procter & Gamble has a 52 week low of $141.45 and a 52 week high of $163.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market cap of $365.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.04, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.44.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $21.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.48 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.60% and a return on equity of 34.04%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.59 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Procter & Gamble will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 776 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.11, for a total value of $122,693.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $768,256.49. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 22,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total transaction of $3,549,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 36,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,943,835.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 776 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.11, for a total transaction of $122,693.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $768,256.49. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 279,063 shares of company stock valued at $43,187,745. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aspect Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. MayTech Global Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $111,000. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PG shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $170.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $156.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.53.

About Procter & Gamble

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.