<div id="readability-page-1">Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Procter &amp; Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG - Free Report) by 15.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 254,445 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 33,126 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Procter &amp; Gamble were worth $36,465,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.<div>Get Procter &amp; Gamble alerts:</div><ul><li>3 Insurance Stocks That Can Act as a New Inflation Hedge </li></ul>Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Procter &amp; Gamble by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 40,068 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,717,000 after buying an additional 13,617 shares during the period. Taylor Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Procter &amp; Gamble by 10.6% in the first quarter. Taylor Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,891 shares of the company's stock valued at $493,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Procter &amp; Gamble by 19.8% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,144 shares of the company's stock valued at $979,000 after buying an additional 1,016 shares during the period. Auxano Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Procter &amp; Gamble by 10.8% in the second quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC now owns 7,315 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,165,000 after buying an additional 714 shares during the period. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its holdings in Procter &amp; Gamble by 2.8% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 30,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,809,000 after buying an additional 809 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.77% of the company's stock. <h2>Procter &amp; Gamble Trading Up 2.8%</h2>PG opened at $147.05 on Friday. Procter &amp; Gamble Company has a 1-year low of $137.62 and a 1-year high of $170.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company has a market cap of $341.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.51 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $151.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $148.96. <ul><li>As Recession Odds Climb, Defensive Sectors Continue to Outperform</li></ul>Procter &amp; Gamble (NYSE:PG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $22.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.36 billion. Procter &amp; Gamble had a net margin of 19.30% and a return on equity of 32.21%. The business's revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.88 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Procter &amp; Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current fiscal year. <h2>Procter &amp; Gamble Increases Dividend</h2>The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 24th will be given a dividend of $1.0885 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 24th. This is a boost from Procter &amp; Gamble's previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. This represents a $4.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Procter &amp; Gamble's payout ratio is presently 62.67%. <h2>Key Headlines Impacting Procter &amp; Gamble</h2><ul><li>Dividend Resilience: Why These Kings Are Safe After a Volatile Q1</li></ul>Here are the key news stories impacting Procter &amp; Gamble this week:<ul> <li>Positive Sentiment: P&amp;G reaffirmed its shareholder-return commitment — 70th consecutive dividend increase and plans to return ~$15B in 2026 ($10B dividends, $5B buybacks), supporting income investors and buyback-driven EPS. P&amp;G Raised Its Dividend</li> <li>Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan maintained an Overweight rating after trimming its price target to $162 (still &gt;10% upside), signaling institutional confidence despite the small PT cut. JPMorgan Adjusts Price Target</li> <li>Positive Sentiment: Category tailwinds: research flags the fragrance-diffuser market expanding in 2026 with P&amp;G named among leaders — incremental growth opportunity in home/eco and smart‑home subsegments. Fragrance Diffuser Market Report</li> <li>Positive Sentiment: Some bullish analysts expect P&amp;G’s upcoming earnings to spur a rally — arguments include easier back‑half comps, potentially beatable guide and attractive cash yields that could attract buyers on any positive print. Earnings Can Spur A Rally</li> <li>Neutral Sentiment: Consensus expects earnings growth next week, but models show P&amp;G may lack the “right combination” for a clean beat — set your expectations for a mixed print and watch management commentary. Zacks: Reports Next Week</li> <li>Neutral Sentiment: Pre-earnings views: sales and EPS are expected to rise, but tariffs, commodity costs and a premium valuation could pressure margins — near‑term execution and guide matter. Zacks: Pre-Q3 Earnings</li> <li>Negative Sentiment: P&amp;G warned shareholders about a low‑priced unsolicited mini‑tender from Potemkin Limited and urged rejection — such offers can create short‑term selling pressure or confusion among retail holders. Mini-Tender Warning</li> <li>Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a debate: several analysts and articles flag P&amp;G trading near ~20x earnings and some trims to price targets (RBC lowered its target to $167), leaving some investors on the sidelines despite solid fundamentals. Valuation Keeps Me On Hold Investing.com: Valuation Debate RBC Trimmed Target</li> </ul><h2>Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth</h2>Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Procter &amp; Gamble from a &#34;hold&#34; rating to a &#34;buy&#34; rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a &#34;hold (c)&#34; rating on shares of Procter &amp; Gamble in a report on Friday, March 27th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Procter &amp; Gamble from $155.00 to $146.00 and set an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Rothschild &amp; Co Redburn boosted their target price on shares of Procter &amp; Gamble from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a &#34;neutral&#34; rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo &amp; Company decreased their price target on shares of Procter &amp; Gamble from $177.00 to $158.00 and set an &#34;overweight&#34; rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Procter &amp; Gamble has a consensus rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and an average target price of $163.00.View Our Latest Research Report on Procter &amp; Gamble<h2>Insider Activity at Procter &amp; Gamble</h2>In other news, insider Susan Street Whaley sold 1,809 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.46, for a total transaction of $288,463.14. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 30,215 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,818,083.90. The trade was a 5.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 36,093 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.33, for a total transaction of $5,858,976.69. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 34,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,680,576.02. The trade was a 50.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 348,618 shares of company stock valued at $55,462,643 over the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders. <h2>About Procter &amp; Gamble</h2> (Free Report)Procter &amp; Gamble NYSE: PG is a multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble, P&amp;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&amp;G's product offering spans several core business categories, including Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric &amp; Home Care, and Baby, Feminine &amp; Family Care.<h2>See Also</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Procter &amp; Gamble</li></ul>Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Procter &amp; Gamble Company (The) (NYSE:PG - Free Report).<img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPVBH?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPVBH"/>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.<h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Procter &amp; Gamble Right Now?</h2>Before you consider Procter &amp; Gamble, you'll want to hear this.MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Procter &amp; Gamble wasn't on the list.While Procter &amp; Gamble currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.View The Five Stocks Here </div>

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG) by 15% in Q4, acquiring an additional 33,126 shares, bringing its total to 254,445 shares valued at $36.47 million. Other hedge funds also raised their holdings. Procter & Gamble's stock opened at $147.05, with a market cap of $341.74 billion and a P/E ratio of 21.79. The company recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.0885 per share, marking its 70th consecutive increase, and reaffirmed plans to return $15 billion to shareholders by 2026.

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Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases 33,126 Shares of Procter & Gamble Company (The) $PG