Apollon Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE:CHD) by 12.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,381 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 365 shares during the quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Church & Dwight were worth $354,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Church & Dwight during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Church & Dwight during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Church & Dwight during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Church & Dwight by 224.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Church & Dwight during the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.60% of the company’s stock.

Church & Dwight Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE CHD opened at $107.58 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $105.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $104.46. The company has a market cap of $26.36 billion, a PE ratio of 45.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.59. Church & Dwight Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.09 and a 52-week high of $113.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.70.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.77. Church & Dwight had a net margin of 9.58% and a return on equity of 20.03%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.65 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Church & Dwight Co., Inc. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Church & Dwight Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This is an increase from Church & Dwight’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. Church & Dwight’s dividend payout ratio is 47.68%.

Insider Activity at Church & Dwight

In other Church & Dwight news, EVP Rick Spann sold 39,520 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total value of $4,426,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,976. This trade represents a 88.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Joseph James Longo sold 7,780 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.44, for a total transaction of $874,783.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 400 shares in the company, valued at $44,976. The trade was a 95.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 102,422 shares of company stock worth $11,424,351 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $114.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Church & Dwight from $99.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Church & Dwight from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Church & Dwight from $114.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Church & Dwight from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.53.

Church & Dwight Profile

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.