United Asset Strategies Inc. Has $3.03 Million Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

United Asset Strategies Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 8.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,674 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,689 shares during the period. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $3,030,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PG. First American Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 66.4% during the 4th quarter. First American Trust FSB now owns 4,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $724,000 after purchasing an additional 1,971 shares in the last quarter. Emfo LLC lifted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Emfo LLC now owns 10,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,544,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 78,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,497,000 after acquiring an additional 346 shares during the period. Sippican Capital Advisors increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 61.1% during the 4th quarter. Sippican Capital Advisors now owns 2,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,551,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,361,000 after purchasing an additional 125,668 shares during the period. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

Procter & Gamble stock traded up $0.93 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $156.38. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,683,767 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,791,909. The stock has a market cap of $367.97 billion, a PE ratio of 26.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52 week low of $141.45 and a 52 week high of $163.14. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $159.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.70.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.14. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.60% and a return on equity of 34.04%. The business had revenue of $21.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.59 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a $1.0065 dividend. This is a boost from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is 62.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Procter & Gamble in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $168.00 price target for the company. Raymond James boosted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $156.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.53.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 22,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total value of $3,549,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,943,835.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 22,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total value of $3,549,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 36,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,943,835.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 101,704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.57, for a total value of $15,618,683.28. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 163,428 shares in the company, valued at $25,097,637.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 279,063 shares of company stock worth $43,187,745 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

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.