Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Purchases 4,334 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 171,144 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,334 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Clorox were worth $24,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CLX. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 2,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Clorox by 1.4% in the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Czech National Bank boosted its position in Clorox by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 21,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,097,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Clorox by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 903 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CLX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Clorox from $164.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $162.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Clorox from $159.00 to $158.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Clorox from $155.00 to $151.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Clorox in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “sell” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $146.43.

Clorox Price Performance

Clorox stock opened at $138.23 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.73, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The Clorox Company has a one year low of $114.68 and a one year high of $176.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.62, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $148.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $143.43.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 3.33% and a return on equity of 302.49%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.51 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 5.83 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is 248.71%.

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.