The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Shares Sold by TIAA Trust National Association

TIAA Trust National Association reduced its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,736 shares of the company’s stock after selling 354 shares during the quarter. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in Clorox were worth $783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 61,576 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC grew its position in Clorox by 93.7% in the 1st quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 72,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,032,000 after acquiring an additional 34,864 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in Clorox by 15.2% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 141,622 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,705,000 after acquiring an additional 18,687 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Clorox by 257.5% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,719,000 after acquiring an additional 8,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Clorox in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,025,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Clorox Stock Performance

Shares of CLX opened at $164.77 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $142.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.82. 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 has a market capitalization of $20.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.39. The Clorox Company has a 52-week low of $114.68 and a 52-week high of $165.71.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.28. Clorox had a return on equity of 281.12% and a net margin of 3.95%. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.97 billion. Research analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 6.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. This is a boost from Clorox’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. Clorox’s payout ratio is currently 252.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CLX shares. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Clorox from $162.00 to $153.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Clorox from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Clorox in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. Argus raised Clorox to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on Clorox in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $122.00 price objective for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.19.

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.