Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Sells 20,570 Shares of Edgewell Personal Care Co (NYSE:EPC)

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL cut its holdings in Edgewell Personal Care Co (NYSE:EPC - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 918,218 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,570 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL owned about 1.89% of Edgewell Personal Care worth $30,852,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Edgewell Personal Care by 21.1% during the 4th quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 2,041,665 shares of the company's stock worth $68,600,000 after purchasing an additional 355,224 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Edgewell Personal Care by 40.5% during the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 878,390 shares of the company's stock worth $29,514,000 after purchasing an additional 253,014 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Edgewell Personal Care in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,473,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Edgewell Personal Care in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,684,000. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Edgewell Personal Care by 563.6% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 148,553 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,400,000 after buying an additional 126,168 shares in the last quarter. 91.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Edgewell Personal Care Price Performance

NYSE EPC traded up $0.78 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $30.00. 368,953 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 456,721. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 2.06 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.99. Edgewell Personal Care Co has a 1 year low of $26.65 and a 1 year high of $41.50. The company has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39 and a beta of 0.94.

Edgewell Personal Care (NYSE:EPC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.06). Edgewell Personal Care had a return on equity of 9.29% and a net margin of 4.09%. On average, analysts predict that Edgewell Personal Care Co will post 3.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Edgewell Personal Care Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. Edgewell Personal Care's payout ratio is 32.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on EPC. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Edgewell Personal Care from $48.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Edgewell Personal Care from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $35.00 to $32.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Edgewell Personal Care presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.71.

Edgewell Personal Care Company Profile

Edgewell Personal Care Company is a manufacturer and marketer of personal care products in the wet shave, sun and skin care, feminine care and infant care categories. As of September 30, 2016, the Company had a portfolio of over 25 brands. It manages its business in four segments: Wet Shave, Sun and Skin Care, Feminine Care and All Other.