Barclays downgrades Procter & Gamble on exposure to slowing markets

Barclays analyst Lauren Lieberman downgraded Procter & Gamble to Equal Weight from Overweight with an unchanged price target of $163. Procter should continue to be considered a best-in-class operator among the broader global consumer staples sector, but its “outsized exposure” to slower growth or declining markets, including China is having an impact on its relative sales performance, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says that while growth in the U.S., the company’s home market, has held up well with continued value and volume share gains, it expects the other markets to continue to weigh on overall growth over the next 12 months. With organic sales growth the stock’s primary valuation support, and with this metric likely to fall below peers, an Equal Weight rating is more fitting, contends Barclays.