The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Shares Sold by Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP

Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP decreased its holdings in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 10.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,771 shares of the company’s stock after selling 437 shares during the period. Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP’s holdings in Clorox were worth $538,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Tyler Stone Wealth Management lifted its position in Clorox by 64.5% in the third quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its position in Clorox by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its position in Clorox by 458.3% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE CLX traded up $1.82 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $147.79. 1,101,982 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,205,563. The Clorox Company has a 1 year low of $114.68 and a 1 year high of $178.21. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $149.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $142.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 234.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.37.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $1.08. Clorox had a net margin of 1.09% and a return on equity of 319.41%. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.98 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is presently 761.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Clorox from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Clorox in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “sell” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Clorox from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Clorox from $148.00 to $136.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $148.63.

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.