BNP Paribas Financial Markets Grows Position in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD - Free Report) by 68.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 432,537 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 176,063 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.18% of Church & Dwight worth $45,291,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Church & Dwight in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased 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. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Church & Dwight in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Church & Dwight during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Church & Dwight in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.60% of the company's stock.

Church & Dwight Price Performance

CHD traded down $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $91.59. 1,892,480 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,597,536. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $104.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.52. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.08 and a 52-week high of $116.46. The company has a market capitalization of $22.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.65, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.02. Church & Dwight had a return on equity of 20.03% and a net margin of 9.58%. The company had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. Church & Dwight's revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Church & Dwight's payout ratio is 50.64%.

Insider Transactions at Church & Dwight

In related news, Director Penry W. Price sold 14,660 shares of Church & Dwight stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.13, for a total transaction of $1,365,285.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,518,514.59. This trade represents a 35.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Rene Hemsey sold 11,060 shares of the business's 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 directly owns 6,437 shares in the company, valued at $707,941.26. This trade represents a 63.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 80,230 shares of company stock valued at $8,903,734 over the last 90 days. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CHD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $106.00 to $102.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Church & Dwight from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $100.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Bank of America raised Church & Dwight from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $112.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Church & Dwight from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Church & Dwight from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $109.13.

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 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.