Columbia Asset Management Sells 100 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Columbia Asset Management lowered its stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,595 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Columbia Asset Management’s holdings in Clorox were worth $1,234,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in Clorox during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,939,000. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox in the fourth quarter worth $8,054,000. Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 61.5% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 3,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 1,202 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Clorox by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,098,302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $501,925,000 after buying an additional 69,969 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Clorox by 39.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 188,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,635,000 after acquiring an additional 53,402 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Price Performance

NYSE:CLX opened at $147.79 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.38, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a 50-day moving average of $150.83 and a 200-day moving average of $158.74. The Clorox Company has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.16. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.87% and a net margin of 6.38%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is currently 133.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Clorox from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com lowered Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 5th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Clorox has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $159.50.

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.