Dearborn Partners LLC Sells 212 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Dearborn Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,135 shares of the company’s stock after selling 212 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in Clorox were worth $674,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CLX. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its position in Clorox by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 141,622 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,705,000 after purchasing an additional 18,687 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Clorox by 257.5% during the 1st 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. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Clorox in the 3rd quarter worth $54,000. Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 32.8% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 267,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,524,000 after purchasing an additional 66,149 shares during the period. Finally, M&G Plc bought a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 2nd quarter valued at about $876,000. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Clorox Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CLX opened at $167.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $162.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.34. The Clorox Company has a 52-week low of $127.60 and a 52-week high of $169.09. The company has a market cap of $20.76 billion, a PE ratio of 58.43, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.41.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 316.08%. The firm’s revenue was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 6.85 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were given a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. Clorox’s payout ratio is currently 170.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Clorox to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Clorox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $174.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. TD Cowen raised Clorox from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on Clorox from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Clorox from $148.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Clorox currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of Clorox stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $286,846.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,719.92. The trade was a 11.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.