Church & Dwight Co., Inc. $CHD Stock Bought by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its Church & Dwight stake by 7.8% in the third quarter, adding 20,133 shares to bring its holdings to 279,262 shares, valued at about $26.4 million.
• Church & Dwight beat quarterly estimates, reporting EPS of $0.92 versus $0.90 expected and revenue of $1.60 billion, up 1% year over year.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $108.44; company insiders sold 141,390 shares worth about $15.3 million over the past three months.

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its position in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD - Free Report) by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 279,262 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 20,133 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. owned about 0.12% of Church & Dwight worth $26,408,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Calamos Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Church & Dwight by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 93,307 shares of the company's stock worth $8,791,000 after acquiring an additional 1,888 shares during the period. Principle Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Church & Dwight by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,900 shares of the company's stock valued at $462,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Church & Dwight by 11.9% during the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,249 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,075,000 after purchasing an additional 4,606 shares during the last quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. lifted its holdings in Church & Dwight by 176.1% during the third quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 392 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC purchased a new stake in Church & Dwight during the third quarter valued at about $311,000. 86.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ravichandra Saligram sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.69, for a total value of $563,450.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $411,656.57. This represents a 57.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Rene Hemsey sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.25, for a total value of $511,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,086 shares in the company, valued at $826,793.50. This trade represents a 38.21% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 141,390 shares of company stock worth $15,252,844. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CHD shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Church & Dwight from $106.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Church & Dwight from $112.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Church & Dwight in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Church & Dwight from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, October 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Church & Dwight presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.44.

Church & Dwight Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Church & Dwight stock opened at $109.25 on Monday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $100.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $81.49 and a 12-month high of $114.64. The company has a market cap of $25.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.62, a PEG ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.45.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.58 billion. Church & Dwight had a net margin of 12.41% and a return on equity of 20.28%. Church & Dwight's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.3075 per share. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. Church & Dwight's payout ratio is 37.85%.

About Church & Dwight

Church & Dwight is a consumer products company whose history traces to 1846, when John Dwight and Austin Church began producing baking soda. The company is best known for its ARM & HAMMER brand and sells household, personal care, and specialty products under a portfolio of owned brands.

Its products include laundry detergents and cleaners, oral care items, cat litter, deodorants, condoms, pregnancy and ovulation tests, hair-removal products, and water flossers. Brands include OxiClean, Trojan, First Response, Nair, Waterpik, and TheraBreath, alongside ARM & HAMMER.

Church & Dwight serves consumers in the United States and international markets.

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