B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Cuts Stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG cut its holdings in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 69.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,936 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,755 shares during the quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in Clorox were worth $477,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Townsquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in Clorox in the third quarter worth $363,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Clorox by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 5,375 shares of the company’s stock valued at $876,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in Clorox during the 3rd quarter valued at about $812,000. Investment Management Corp of Ontario grew its position in Clorox by 50.7% during the 3rd quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 4,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $678,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Clorox by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,016 shares of the company’s stock worth $817,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Clorox Price Performance

CLX opened at $143.76 on Friday. The Clorox Company has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $171.37. The company has a market cap of $17.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $150.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.44.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 6.38% and a return on equity of 316.87%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. Research analysts predict 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 23rd. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 133.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Clorox in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Clorox from $140.00 to $139.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $159.00.

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.