Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Raises Stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,310 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $2,820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Clorox in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Clorox by 139.8% during the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. First Foundation Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Clorox in the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in Clorox in the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 99.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Clorox Stock Up 1.1 %

Clorox stock opened at $167.64 on Friday. The Clorox Company has a 12 month low of $127.60 and a 12 month high of $169.09. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $162.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $147.47. The firm has a market cap of $20.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.41, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 316.08%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 6.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 23rd. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is presently 170.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CLX shares. TD Cowen upgraded Clorox from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Clorox from $148.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Clorox from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Clorox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $174.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $155.00.

Insider Activity at Clorox

In other Clorox news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $286,846.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,471 shares in the company, valued at $2,229,719.92. This represents a 11.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.