The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Position Trimmed by Hancock Whitney Corp

Hancock Whitney Corp decreased its holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,010 shares of the company’s stock after selling 260 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Clorox were worth $327,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 46,877.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,500,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $733,095,000 after acquiring an additional 4,490,421 shares during the last quarter. Nuance Investments LLC increased its stake in Clorox by 150.6% in the 2nd quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 1,597,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,035,000 after purchasing an additional 960,094 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Clorox by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,492,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $237,372,000 after buying an additional 31,510 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 14.4% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 961,387 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,200,000 after buying an additional 120,716 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 11.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 802,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,483,000 after buying an additional 85,529 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Stock Performance

Shares of CLX opened at $167.16 on Thursday. 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 Clorox Company has a 12 month low of $127.60 and a 12 month high of $171.35. The company’s fifty day moving average is $162.91 and its 200-day moving average is $149.01. The firm has a market cap of $20.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.41.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.08% and a net margin of 4.78%. The business’s revenue was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 6.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th will be given a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. Clorox’s payout ratio is currently 170.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Clorox

In related 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,471 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,229,719.92. This trade represents a 11.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.