New York, February 22, 2026, 14:17 EST — Market’s closed.
The Procter & Gamble Company (PG) ended Friday up $2.23, finishing at $160.78—a 1.4% gain. U.S. markets will stay closed Sunday, opening again on Monday.
This isn’t so much about the single-day jump; it’s about jockeying for position. With trade policy and growth outlooks in flux, investors have been piling into consumer staples—those daily necessities.
Wall Street faces a fresh dose of uncertainty this week after the U.S. Supreme Court tossed out President Donald Trump’s broad tariffs. Now, investors are keeping an eye on Nvidia’s earnings set for Wednesday, along with Trump’s State of the Union address on Tuesday. “What was left behind in 2025 is working in 2026,” said Marta Norton, chief investment strategist at Empower, flagging a shift toward sectors like consumer staples. (Reuters)
P&G beat the tape Friday, finishing ahead as the consumer-staples ETF XLP added 0.25%. SPY, tracking the S&P 500, picked up roughly 0.7%.
Several rivals followed suit. Colgate-Palmolive picked up 1.2%, while Kimberly-Clark edged up 0.3% in the most recent session.
Late-week economic numbers flipped the script: fresh data pointed to a cooler U.S. economy, but inflation edged higher. The Bureau of Economic Analysis posted real GDP growth at a 1.4% annual clip for the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the PCE price index—the Fed’s go-to inflation measure—was up 2.9%. Core PCE, which leaves out food and energy, hit a 2.7% pace. (Bureau of Economic Analysis)
P&G’s slower growth sometimes attracts defensive buyers, yet it also throws volume trends—particularly in the U.S.—under a harsher spotlight as consumers feel the pinch of elevated prices. Prices stay firm, that is, until they don’t.
P&G’s latest numbers, out Jan. 22, showed second-quarter net sales inching up 1% to $22.21 billion, with adjusted earnings per share of $1.88—topping forecasts, despite softer demand in the U.S. “We need to get the U.S. growing,” finance chief Andre Schulten told analysts. The company stuck to its full-year outlook. (Reuters)
Even so, staples aren’t a sure bet. Should rates climb further and money rotates back into riskier assets, the sector’s premium could tighten. There’s also the chance trade policy brings fresh cost jolts.
Sentiment faces its next hurdle on Tuesday, as the Conference Board drops its consumer confidence index at 10 a.m. ET. If the number disappoints, attention tightens on consumer wallets—and stocks such as Procter & Gamble, which track every small spending shift. (conference-board.org)
