The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Stake Lowered by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 296,503 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,131 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Clorox were worth $48,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,744,000. AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Clorox in the 4th quarter worth about $447,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Clorox by 28.6% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 98,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,045,000 after purchasing an additional 21,970 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Clorox by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 76,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,408,000 after buying an additional 11,606 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in shares of Clorox by 46.1% during the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 11,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,905,000 after purchasing an additional 3,700 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Stock Up 1.9 %

CLX stock opened at $145.70 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $151.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.22. The Clorox Company has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $171.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.95 billion, a PE ratio of 39.81, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm posted $2.16 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Clorox’s payout ratio is currently 133.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on CLX. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Clorox from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $159.50.

Clorox Profile

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.