Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Sells 187,955 Shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lessened its holdings in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD – Get Rating) by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 302,310 shares of the company’s stock after selling 187,955 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned approximately 0.12% of Church & Dwight worth $21,596,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toroso Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Church & Dwight by 7.4% in the third quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 4,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky bought a new position in shares of Church & Dwight in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,595,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Church & Dwight in the third quarter valued at approximately $184,000. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of Church & Dwight by 3.1% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 335,471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,463,000 after purchasing an additional 10,146 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its position in shares of Church & Dwight by 5.0% in the third quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 8,705 shares of the company’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on CHD. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 6th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Church & Dwight in a research report on Thursday, February 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. TheStreet lowered shares of Church & Dwight from a “b” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Finally, Argus lowered shares of Church & Dwight from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Church & Dwight currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $87.81.

Church & Dwight Stock Down 0.3 %

CHD opened at $85.96 on Friday. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $70.16 and a fifty-two week high of $105.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $82.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.43. The company has a market capitalization of $20.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.45.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 3rd. The company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. Church & Dwight had a net margin of 7.70% and a return on equity of 20.70%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

Church & Dwight Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 15th were paid a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 14th. This is an increase from Church & Dwight’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Church & Dwight’s payout ratio is currently 64.88%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Penry W. Price sold 17,544 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.90, for a total value of $1,471,941.60. Following the sale, the director now owns 24,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,039,692.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Paul Richard Wood sold 48,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.37, for a total transaction of $4,023,602.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,004.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Penry W. Price sold 17,544 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.90, for a total transaction of $1,471,941.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,039,692.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 83,350 shares of company stock worth $6,969,241. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Church & Dwight Profile

(Get Rating)

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.