Verity Asset Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Verity Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,110 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 241 shares during the quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $501,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in Clorox by 163.8% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Clorox in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 300.0% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Clorox by 99.1% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Clorox in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on CLX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Clorox from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Clorox in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Clorox from $139.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 5th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Clorox from $153.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Clorox currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $156.07.

Clorox Price Performance

Shares of Clorox stock opened at $159.80 on Tuesday. 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 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.37. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $158.50. The company has a market capitalization of $19.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.68, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.42.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.16. Clorox had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 316.08%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.05%. Clorox’s payout ratio is 170.04%.

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.