Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $108.44

Shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $108.44.

Several research firms recently issued reports on CHD. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up from $105.00) on shares of Church & Dwight in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Church & Dwight in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Church & Dwight from $112.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Church & Dwight from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Church & Dwight in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th.

Church & Dwight Price Performance

CHD opened at $111.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.26. Church & Dwight has a one year low of $81.49 and a one year high of $114.64.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. The firm 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 was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Church & Dwight will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Church & Dwight

In other news, Director Ravichandra Saligram sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.69, for a total value of $563,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $411,656.57. This represents a 57.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard A. Dierker sold 83,340 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.59, for a total transaction of $9,133,230.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 38,659 shares in the company, valued at $4,236,639.81. This represents a 68.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 137,090 shares of company stock valued at $14,811,277. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Church & Dwight

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CHD. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Church & Dwight by 65.3% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 79,801 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,519,000 after acquiring an additional 31,539 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Church & Dwight by 13.3% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 14,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,366,000 after buying an additional 1,699 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Church & Dwight by 13.6% during the third quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 3,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc raised its position in Church & Dwight by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 243,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,954,000 after buying an additional 2,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Church & Dwight by 128.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 6,876 shares of the company’s stock valued at $666,000 after acquiring an additional 3,867 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.60% of the company’s stock.

Church & Dwight Company Profile

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.