New York, Feb 19, 2026, 14:56 (EST) — Regular session.
- Procter & Gamble shares edged higher after executives reiterated a second-half pickup and stuck with full-year targets at CAGNY.
- Tide’s new “evo” detergent tile launch added to the innovation narrative around the stock.
- Traders’ next macro test lands Friday with the PCE inflation report.
Procter & Gamble (PG.N) shares were up about 0.6% at $157.73 in afternoon trade on Thursday after CEO Shailesh Jejurikar and CFO Andre Schulten told investors the company still expects the year to improve. “We expect sequential improvement in the second half,” Schulten said, as the company maintained its fiscal 2026 guidance ranges. (Investing)
The modest gain came as Wall Street slipped, pressured by weakness in megacap tech and private-equity names. “The market is trying to grapple with what business lines are under threat in a material way from AI,” said Keith Buchanan, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments. (Reuters)
Why it matters for P&G now: its CAGNY materials showed organic sales — which strip out currency swings and portfolio changes — were flat in the first half of fiscal 2026, with eight of 10 categories growing or holding sales. P&G reiterated its fiscal 2026 ranges for organic sales growth of 0% to 4% and core EPS growth of 0% to 4% (its adjusted profit-per-share metric), and guided for adjusted free cash flow productivity of 85% to 90%, a measure of cash conversion. The stock is up about 10% so far this year, the same materials showed. (MarketScreener)
A product catalyst also landed this week. Tide unveiled Tide evo, a waterless “fiber-detergent tile” that P&G is pitching as a new format in laundry care. “Tide evo represents over ten years of innovation and product development,” said Marchoe Northern, president of P&G Fabric Care. (Procter & Gamble)
Axios called Tide evo the biggest format change for the brand since pods and said it is scheduled to begin shipping nationally on April 4, with some retailers stocking it in March. The outlet said P&G holds about 50 patents tied to the design and manufacturing process. (Axios)
Analyst notes also flickered. Wells Fargo raised its price target on P&G to $177 from $165 and kept an Overweight rating, according to a note carried by TheFly. The bank said it was refreshing targets to reflect sector moves. (TipRanks)
The stock has had to work off a weak prior session. P&G closed down 1.69% on Wednesday at $156.86, even as the S&P 500 finished higher, MarketWatch reported, with trading volume above its 50-day average. (MarketWatch)
P&G also looked steadier than staples peers on Thursday. Colgate-Palmolive (CL.N) was down about 1.4% and Kimberly-Clark (KMB.N) fell about 1.7%, while the consumer staples sector ETF (XLP) slid roughly 0.7%.
But the setup cuts both ways. If consumers stay cautious and promotions intensify, a flat first half can turn into a tougher second half, and new formats like Tide evo still have to earn shelf space and repeat buying.
The next hard catalyst is Friday’s U.S. personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, due Feb. 20, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. (Bea)
