Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 1% After Analyst Downgrade

Procter & Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG) fell 1% during mid-day trading on Friday after Bank of America lowered their price target on the stock from $171.00 to $167.00. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the stock. Procter & Gamble traded as low as $144.76 and last traded at $145.1670. 9,584,406 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 16% from the average session volume of 11,350,566 shares. The stock had previously closed at $146.66.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on PG. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $164.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $171.00 to $162.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $157.00 to $165.00 in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $156.00 to $179.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $163.89.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 95,903 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.15, for a total transaction of $14,495,738.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 182,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,601,048.05. This trade represents a 34.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 15,169 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.28, for a total transaction of $2,461,625.32. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 44,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,259,595.80. This trade represents a 25.32% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 348,618 shares of company stock valued at $55,462,643 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Procter & Gamble this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Launched Mr. Clean PRO to expand P&G’s professional/commercial cleaning lineup — targets higher-margin, recurring demand from businesses and could open a new commercial channel for the Mr. Clean franchise. PG Expands Professional Cleaning Portfolio With Mr. Clean PRO Launch
• Positive Sentiment: Multi-year, multi-brand WNBA partnership aims to boost brand relevance and consumer engagement across flagship personal-care brands — a strategic marketing move that can help sustain share and pricing power over time. P&G WNBA Partnership Aims To Build Brand Relevance And Investor Interest
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive change in health care: a long-tenured CEO retired and a successor was named — operationally important but likely a gradual transition with limited immediate impact on results. P&G names new health care CEO as 33-year veteran retires
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America trimmed its price target (keeps a buy rating) — signals slightly reduced upside expectations while preserving conviction in P&G’s longer-term cash generation. Benzinga
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analyst price-target cuts and cautious ratings: RBC and UBS trimmed targets to the high‑$160s and Goldman remains at a hold — these actions amplify concerns about limited near-term upside and contribute to selling pressure. RBC cuts price target on Procter & Gamble to 167 from 172; keeps outperform rating UBS Group Lowers Procter & Gamble Price Target to $166.00 Goldman Sachs Sticks to Their Hold Rating for Procter & Gamble (PG)
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation critique: recent coverage highlights PG’s premium valuation versus peers amid soft demand and a modest growth outlook — a narrative that pressures sentiment until clearer upside from volume, pricing, or margin expansion emerges. Procter & Gamble’s Premium Valuation: Buy Now or Stay on Sidelines?

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.8% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 594,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,409,000 after purchasing an additional 21,825 shares during the period. Triodos Investment Management BV boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 7.3% during the third quarter. Triodos Investment Management BV now owns 255,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,195,000 after acquiring an additional 17,400 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 0.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 234,630,605 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,050,992,000 after acquiring an additional 1,419,322 shares during the last quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 820.6% during the third quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 14,803 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,308,000 after acquiring an additional 13,195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Procter & Gamble by 32.7% during the third quarter. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. now owns 150,814 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,173,000 after acquiring an additional 37,198 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $149.25. The company has a market cap of $337.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.16 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $22.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.36 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 32.21% and a net margin of 19.30%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.88 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 23rd were issued a $1.0568 dividend. This represents a $4.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 23rd. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 62.67%.

About Procter & Gamble

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.