Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 1,632,014 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 24.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,426,726 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,632,014 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises 1.3% of Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.36% of Procter & Gamble worth $1,391,505,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cottage Street Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Cottage Street Advisors LLC now owns 5,646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $947,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 4,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $788,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth approximately $503,000. Aviso Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 189.1% during the fourth quarter. Aviso Wealth Management now owns 5,423 shares of the company’s stock worth $909,000 after buying an additional 3,547 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $322,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 35,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.68, for a total transaction of $6,078,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,829,817.68. This trade represents a 61.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock worth $23,988,008 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of Procter & Gamble stock opened at $166.48 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $390.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.47. The Procter & Gamble Company has a fifty-two week low of $153.52 and a fifty-two week high of $180.43.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.66 billion. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on PG shares. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.47.

Procter & Gamble Company 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.