Confluence Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Confluence Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 871,235 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,362 shares during the quarter. Clorox comprises approximately 1.9% of Confluence Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Confluence Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Clorox were worth $141,933,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. First Foundation Advisors acquired a new position in Clorox in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Clorox in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Clorox by 139.8% during the second quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Clorox by 99.1% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in Clorox in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Clorox Stock Performance

Shares of CLX stock opened at $162.85 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $161.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.58. The Clorox Company has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $169.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08. The company has a market cap of $20.16 billion, a PE ratio of 56.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.41.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.50. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.08% and a net margin of 4.78%. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. Clorox’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 6.81 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 23rd. Clorox’s payout ratio is 170.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Clorox news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,719.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. DA Davidson increased their target price on Clorox from $153.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Citigroup increased their price objective on Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Clorox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $174.00 to $187.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Clorox from $140.00 to $139.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $155.00.

Clorox 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.