Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) Shares Sold by Buffington Mohr McNeal

Buffington Mohr McNeal decreased its holdings in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) by 6.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,100 shares of the company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the period. Buffington Mohr McNeal’s holdings in Church & Dwight were worth $766,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CHD. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Church & Dwight by 106,565.5% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,688,996 shares of the company’s stock valued at $539,200,000 after buying an additional 6,682,725 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Church & Dwight by 89.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,027,312 shares of the company’s stock valued at $552,283,000 after purchasing an additional 2,839,783 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Church & Dwight in the 4th quarter valued at $192,019,000. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Church & Dwight by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,148,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $253,808,000 after purchasing an additional 645,291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Church & Dwight by 31.3% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,301,313 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,459,000 after purchasing an additional 548,298 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.60% of the company’s stock.

Church & Dwight Trading Up 1.7 %

Church & Dwight stock traded up $1.76 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $103.34. 583,474 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,284,591. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.90, a PEG ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.53. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $82.25 and a fifty-two week high of $105.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.23.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.65. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. Church & Dwight had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 12.88%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.62 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Church & Dwight Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were issued a dividend of $0.2838 per share. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This is a boost from Church & Dwight’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Church & Dwight’s dividend payout ratio is 37.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CHD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Church & Dwight from $107.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Church & Dwight in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $110.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on Church & Dwight from $99.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Church & Dwight from $87.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Church & Dwight from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Church & Dwight presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael Read sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $472,500.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Michael Read sold 4,500 shares of Church & Dwight stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $472,500.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Barry A. Bruno sold 9,926 shares of Church & Dwight stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.55, for a total value of $1,037,763.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $451,551.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 373,052 shares of company stock worth $38,603,796. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Church & Dwight Company Profile

Church & Dwight Co, Inc develops, manufactures, and markets household, personal care, and specialty products. It operates in three segments: Consumer Domestic, Consumer International, and Specialty Products Division. The company offers cat litters, carpet deodorizers, laundry detergents, and baking soda, as well as other baking soda based products under the ARM & HAMMER brand; condoms, lubricants, and vibrators under the TROJAN brand; stain removers, cleaning solutions, laundry detergents, and bleach alternatives under the OXICLEAN brand; toothbrushes under the SPINBRUSH brand; home pregnancy and ovulation test kits under the FIRST RESPONSE brand; depilatories under the NAIR brand; oral analgesics under the ORAJEL brand; laundry detergents under the XTRA brand; gummy dietary supplements under the L'IL CRITTERS and VITAFUSION brands; dry shampoos under the BATISTE brand; water flossers and showerheads under the WATERPIK brand; cold shortening and relief products under the ZICAM brand; oral care products under the THERABREATH brand; and acne treatment products under the HERO brand.