5 Best Defensive Stocks to Buy Now

3. The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 72

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) is another mature dividend-paying company that has been consistent with growing its dividends for 65 years now and is therefore a compelling consumer defensive stock to invest in right now. The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) has a 5-year dividend CAGR of 5.48% and a payout ratio of 60.72%. As of July 4, the stock has gained 7.45% over the past twelve months and has a forward dividend yield of 2.50%. Moreover, The Procter & Gamble Company’s (NYSE:PG) trailing-twelve-month FCF currently sits at $13.95 billion, which allows the company to remain consistent with further growing its dividends.

As of June 21, Deutsche Bank analyst Steve Powers has a $157 price target and Buy rating on The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG).

At the end of the first quarter of 2022, 72 hedge funds disclosed ownership of stakes in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG). These funds held collective stakes worth $6.06 billion in the company. Of these, Rajiv Jain’s GQG Partners was the most prominent shareholder in the company owning over 9.91 million shares of the company.