Financial Counselors Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

Financial Counselors Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 128,064 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,568 shares during the quarter. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Church & Dwight were worth $13,410,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CHD. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Church & Dwight in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Church & Dwight by 224.4% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Church & Dwight during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in Church & Dwight during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Church & Dwight in the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.60% of the company’s stock.

Church & Dwight Price Performance

Church & Dwight stock opened at $106.30 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.35 and a 52-week high of $116.46. The firm has a market cap of $26.15 billion, a PE ratio of 44.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $107.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $105.89.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.77. Church & Dwight had a return on equity of 20.03% and a net margin of 9.58%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Church & Dwight’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Church & Dwight’s payout ratio is currently 49.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Rene Hemsey sold 11,060 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.98, for a total value of $1,216,378.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $707,941.26. This represents a 63.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Maynadier Patrick D. De sold 54,510 shares of Church & Dwight stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.98, for a total value of $6,322,069.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,217,442.06. This trade represents a 83.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 65,570 shares of company stock worth $7,538,449. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CHD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $107.00 to $106.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Church & Dwight from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Church & Dwight from $128.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Church & Dwight in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Church & Dwight from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.56.

Church & Dwight Profile

Church & Dwight Co, Inc engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of household, personal care, and specialty products. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Domestic, Consumer International, Specialty Products Division (SPD), and Corporate. The Consumer Domestic segment offers household products, such as laundry detergents, fabric softener sheets, cat litter, household cleaning products, and personal care products including antiperspirants, oral care products, depilatories, reproductive health products, oral analgesics, nasal saline moisturizers, and dietary supplements.