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Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) shareholders elected all 12 director nominees and approved the company’s auditor appointment and executive compensation plan at the company’s 2026 annual meeting, while rejecting three shareholder proposals.
Shailesh Jejurikar, P&G’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, said the company delivered organic sales and core earnings-per-share growth within its initial guidance ranges despite what he described as a volatile geopolitical, macroeconomic and consumer environment.
The company said top-line performance improved sequentially, with organic sales growth moving from one point in the first half of the year to two points in the second half. Nine of 10 product categories and all geographic regions held or increased organic sales during the year, while aggregate global value and volume share trends improved in the second half and exited the year roughly flat.
P&G returned more than $15 billion to shareholders during the fiscal year, including more than $10 billion in dividends and $5 billion in share repurchases, Jejurikar said. The company increased its dividend 3%, marking its 70th consecutive annual dividend increase and its 136th consecutive year of dividend payments.
Dividend Declaration and Voting Results
The board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.0885 per share, payable on or after Nov. 16, 2026, to common shareholders of record at the close of business on Oct. 23, 2026. Preferred shareholders of record at the start of business on Oct. 23 will also receive the dividend.
Shareholders approved the election of directors, ratified Deloitte & Touche LLP as P&G’s independent registered public accounting firm, and approved the company’s advisory “Say on Pay” vote on executive compensation.
Three shareholder proposals failed:
- A proposal from The Accountability Board seeking to lower the ownership threshold for shareholders to call a special meeting to 15% from 25%.
- A National Legal and Policy Center proposal seeking a policy to maintain existing eligibility thresholds for shareholders submitting proposals, regardless of potential regulatory changes.
- A Bahnsen Family Trust proposal requesting annual reporting on charitable contributions.
P&G’s board had recommended votes against each shareholder proposal. Susan Whaley, P&G’s chief legal officer and secretary, said final voting results would be reported in a Form 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Strategy, Innovation and Portfolio Expansion
Jejurikar said P&G does not view its recent relative performance as requiring a change in its core strategy. Instead, he said the company is adapting its execution to respond to media fragmentation, changes in the retail landscape and the cumulative impact of inflation.
The company identified four execution interventions: building a deeper consumer-first mindset, transforming brand-building to reduce the path from awareness to purchase, developing holistic retailer partnerships, and pursuing a “stronger core and bigger more” approach to brands and innovation.
Jejurikar cited North American laundry as an example, saying P&G upgraded Tide product lines while launching Tide evo detergent tiles and continuing innovation on Downy Unstopables beads. He said the company is also using connected consumer data to generate insights and accelerate technology development.
Chief Financial Officer Andre Schulten said P&G does not currently foresee a stock split. He said fractional-share investing has made P&G shares accessible at a range of prices, while a stock split would not change the company’s fundamental value and could add administrative costs.
Jejurikar also discussed P&G’s recent acquisition of Thorne, describing the performance and wellness brand as a strategic opportunity in beauty and health. He said Thorne has a loyal consumer base, a portfolio of vitamins, minerals and supplements, healthcare-professional endorsements, attractive margins and a strong top-line growth profile.
Tariffs, Manufacturing and Sustainability
Jejurikar said the net impact of tariffs in fiscal 2026 was a $250 million pretax cost, included within a $1.2 billion commodity, foreign-exchange and interest headwind. He said the situation involving Canadian tariffs continued to evolve and that the company would provide more detail during its earnings call later in the month.
The CEO said more than 85% of products P&G sells in the U.S. are made in the U.S. Manufacturing locations are selected based on proximity to consumers and customers, raw-material availability, capacity and cost, he said.
On packaging, Jejurikar said 80% of P&G consumer packaging is designed to be recyclable or reusable, compared with 55% in 2018. The company has reduced virgin petroleum plastic use in consumer packaging by 24% versus 2018, he said, while noting that further progress depends partly on broader supply-chain and recycling infrastructure.
Jejurikar said P&G is applying artificial intelligence in consumer insights, brand building, innovation, supply-chain operations and everyday work. He characterized AI as an “amplifier of human potential” and said the company is focused on helping employees develop skills for an AI-enabled future.
About Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG)
The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG) is a consumer products company that develops, manufactures and markets branded products used in households and personal care routines. Its portfolio includes products in categories such as beauty, grooming, health care, fabric and home care, and family care.
Major brands associated with Procter & Gamble include Pampers, Tide, Gillette, Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Oral-B, Crest, Olay, Old Spice, Febreze, Mr. Clean, Swiffer and Bounty. The company sells its products through retailers, e-commerce platforms and other distribution channels.
Founded in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble, the company has grown into a global consumer goods business serving customers in markets around the world.
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