The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Shares Purchased by GHP Investment Advisors Inc.

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 2.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,634 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $496,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Clorox by 1,715.5% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,461,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,411,000 after buying an additional 1,380,724 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Clorox in the 4th quarter valued at about $144,844,000. Nuance Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 150.6% in the second quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 1,597,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,035,000 after acquiring an additional 960,094 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Clorox during the 4th quarter worth $128,382,000. Finally, Parsifal Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Clorox during the 4th quarter valued at about $128,245,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Clorox Stock Performance

Shares of CLX opened at $166.27 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $146.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.32. The Clorox Company has a 12-month low of $114.68 and a 12-month high of $167.75. The firm has a market cap of $20.59 billion, a PE ratio of 86.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 6.63 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were paid a $1.22 dividend. This is an increase from Clorox’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 252.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $153.00 target price on shares of Clorox in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Clorox from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Clorox in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $122.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Clorox from $150.00 to $148.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $286,846.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 13,471 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,229,719.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

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.