Vest Financial LLC Raises Stock Holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Vest Financial LLC raised its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 362,047 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 60,306 shares during the quarter. Clorox accounts for about 1.1% of Vest Financial LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Vest Financial LLC owned about 0.29% of Clorox worth $58,981,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CLX. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Clorox by 1,525.7% in the 1st 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 during the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 93.7% during the first quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 72,053 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,032,000 after purchasing an additional 34,864 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in shares of Clorox by 15.2% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 141,622 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,705,000 after purchasing an additional 18,687 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Clorox by 257.5% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,719,000 after purchasing an additional 8,087 shares during the period. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Clorox during the 1st quarter worth $1,025,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on CLX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Clorox from $148.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Clorox in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $122.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $153.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $150.14.

Insider Activity

In other Clorox news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $286,846.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,229,719.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Clorox Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE CLX traded down $0.65 on Friday, reaching $161.96. The company had a trading volume of 682,801 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,230,643. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04. The company’s fifty day moving average is $159.28 and its 200 day moving average is $145.15. The Clorox Company has a 52-week low of $114.68 and a 52-week high of $169.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 83.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.41.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.28. Clorox had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 281.12%. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. Clorox’s payout ratio is presently 252.85%.

Clorox Company 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.