Focus Financial Network Inc. Lowers Position in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

Focus Financial Network Inc. cut its stake in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,667 shares of the company’s stock after selling 292 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc.’s holdings in Church & Dwight were worth $384,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in Church & Dwight during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Church & Dwight during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Church & Dwight during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Church & Dwight in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. 86.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Church & Dwight Trading Up 1.5 %

CHD opened at $107.58 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $105.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $104.46. The company has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.39, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.59. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $96.09 and a 52 week high of $113.50. 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 (NYSE:CHD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, hitting 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. Analysts forecast that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Church & Dwight Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from Church & Dwight’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Church & Dwight’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CHD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Church & Dwight from $128.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on Church & Dwight from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Church & Dwight from $114.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Church & Dwight from $99.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Church & Dwight from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Church & Dwight currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.53.

Insider Buying and Selling at Church & Dwight

In other Church & Dwight news, CAO Joseph James Longo sold 7,780 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.44, for a total transaction of $874,783.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,976. This trade represents a 95.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Maynadier Patrick D. De sold 45,120 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.19, for a total value of $5,062,012.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,158,361.75. The trade was a 81.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 102,422 shares of company stock valued at $11,424,351. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.