The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Shares Sold by Whittier Trust Co.

Whittier Trust Co. reduced its stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 27.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,243 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,208 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $443,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Choreo LLC boosted its stake in Clorox by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $819,000 after purchasing an additional 652 shares in the last quarter. Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in Clorox by 61.8% during the fourth quarter. Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. now owns 65,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,296,000 after buying an additional 24,897 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Clorox by 1,525.7% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 65,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,046,000 after buying an additional 61,576 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC boosted its stake in Clorox by 93.7% during the first quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 72,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,032,000 after buying an additional 34,864 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in Clorox by 15.2% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 141,622 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,705,000 after buying an additional 18,687 shares in the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Clorox Stock Up 1.1 %

CLX stock traded up $1.69 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $157.13. The stock had a trading volume of 256,943 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,251,643. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.73. The Clorox Company has a 1-year low of $114.68 and a 1-year high of $158.89. The company has a fifty day moving average of $139.38 and a 200 day moving average of $142.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.54, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.39.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Clorox had a return on equity of 382.58% and a net margin of 3.95%. On average, equities analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 6.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. This is a positive change from Clorox’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is currently 252.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on CLX shares. TD Cowen started coverage on Clorox in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $122.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Argus raised Clorox to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Clorox from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their target price on Clorox from $162.00 to $153.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.19.

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.