Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Decreases Holdings in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. cut its stake in shares of Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) by 27.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 850 shares of the company’s stock after selling 320 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Church & Dwight were worth $89,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Church & Dwight in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Church & Dwight in the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Church & Dwight in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Church & Dwight in the 2nd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Church & Dwight in the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. 86.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Church & Dwight Stock Down 0.1 %

CHD opened at $100.52 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $82.25 and a 52 week high of $110.31. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $102.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.03. The company has a market capitalization of $24.61 billion, a PE ratio of 30.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.54.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.09. Church & Dwight had a net margin of 13.38% and a return on equity of 19.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.92 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.2838 dividend. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. Church & Dwight’s payout ratio is 34.77%.

Insider Activity at Church & Dwight

In related news, EVP Barry A. Bruno sold 59,328 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.37, for a total value of $5,895,423.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $429,179.03. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on CHD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Church & Dwight from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Church & Dwight from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Church & Dwight from $116.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Church & Dwight from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $110.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Church & Dwight in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $120.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $107.50.

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.