Private Advisor Group LLC Raises Holdings in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) by 66.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,287 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,308 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Church & Dwight were worth $2,438,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in Church & Dwight during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Church & Dwight during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Church & Dwight during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Church & Dwight by 224.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 266 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Church & Dwight during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. 86.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Church & Dwight Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of Church & Dwight stock opened at $107.52 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.70. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $96.35 and a fifty-two week high of $113.50. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.78. The company has a market cap of $26.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.59.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.77 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 last year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.295 dividend. This is a positive change from Church & Dwight’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Church & Dwight’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Church & Dwight from $107.00 to $106.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Church & Dwight from $114.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Church & Dwight from $114.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays upped their target price on Church & Dwight from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Church & Dwight in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.47.

Insider Transactions at Church & Dwight

In other news, EVP Michael Read acquired 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $106.82 per share, for a total transaction of $117,502.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 2,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $267,584.10. This represents a 78.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ravichandra Krishnamu Saligram sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.11, for a total value of $1,061,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,448,575. This trade represents a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 49,522 shares of company stock valued at $5,487,555 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Church & Dwight Company 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, and Corporate. The Consumer Domestic segment offers household products, such as laundry detergents, fabric softener sheets, cat litter, and household cleaning products, and personal care products including antiperspirants, oral care products, depilatories, reproductive health products, oral analgesics, nasal saline moisturizers, and dietary supplements.