Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 11,405 Shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD - Free Report) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 613,758 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,405 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.25% of Church & Dwight worth $58,037,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. 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. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Church & Dwight by 99.6% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 526,591 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,224,000 after buying an additional 262,801 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its position in Church & Dwight by 1,474.7% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 233,318 shares of the company's stock worth $21,379,000 after acquiring an additional 218,501 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Church & Dwight by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,200,426 shares of the company's stock worth $751,405,000 after acquiring an additional 217,047 shares during the period. Finally, Liontrust Investment Partners LLP raised its holdings in Church & Dwight by 108.1% in the 3rd quarter. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP now owns 306,170 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,056,000 after acquiring an additional 159,046 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.60% of the company's stock.

Church & Dwight Stock Up 0.3 %

Church & Dwight stock traded up $0.35 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $107.18. 844,241 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,270,969. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $82.25 and a fifty-two week high of $108.68. The company's fifty day moving average price is $104.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.66. The company has a market cap of $26.21 billion, a PE ratio of 33.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.51.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.49 billion. Church & Dwight had a net margin of 13.13% and a return on equity of 20.35%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.85 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.2838 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. Church & Dwight's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CHD. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Church & Dwight from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. TheStreet upgraded Church & Dwight from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Church & Dwight from $83.00 to $82.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 6th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Church & Dwight from $99.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $91.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.56.

Insider Transactions at Church & Dwight

In other Church & Dwight news, EVP Michael Read sold 9,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.95, for a total value of $908,550.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,325 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,042,308.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Michael Read sold 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.95, for a total value of $908,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,325 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,042,308.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert K. Shearer sold 13,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.36, for a total transaction of $1,403,952.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,095,926.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 376,972 shares of company stock valued at $39,133,366. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.