Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 9,800 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund trimmed its holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 30.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 21,931 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,800 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Clorox were worth $3,562,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in Clorox by 46,877.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,500,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $733,095,000 after acquiring an additional 4,490,421 shares in the last quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP increased its holdings in shares of Clorox by 512.7% in the third quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP now owns 542,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,315,000 after purchasing an additional 453,624 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Clorox by 302.0% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 353,367 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,390,000 after purchasing an additional 265,455 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Clorox by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,182,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,332,947,000 after purchasing an additional 245,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Clorox by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 776,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,456,000 after buying an additional 168,111 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Price Performance

Shares of CLX stock opened at $157.00 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The Clorox Company has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $171.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $157.40 and a 200-day moving average of $160.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.42.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.16. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.87% and a net margin of 6.38%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.16 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.11%. Clorox’s payout ratio is currently 133.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CLX has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com cut Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. TD Cowen upgraded Clorox from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Clorox from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Clorox presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $158.21.

About Clorox

The Clorox Company manufactures and markets consumer and professional products worldwide. It operates through four segments: Health and Wellness, Household, Lifestyle, and International. The Health and Wellness segment offers cleaning products, such as laundry additives and home care products primarily under the Clorox, Clorox2, Scentiva, Pine-Sol, Liquid-Plumr, Tilex, and Formula 409 brands; professional cleaning and disinfecting products under the CloroxPro and Clorox Healthcare brands; professional food service products under the Hidden Valley brand; and vitamins, minerals and supplement products under the RenewLife, Natural Vitality, NeoCell, and Rainbow Light brands in the United States.