Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Purchases 540 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 7.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,735 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $1,256,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 163.8% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CLX. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays upped their target price on Clorox from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com cut Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Clorox in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $159.62.

Clorox Price Performance

Shares of CLX opened at $148.53 on Wednesday. The Clorox Company has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $171.37. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $155.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $160.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The stock has a market cap of $18.30 billion, a PE ratio of 40.58, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.16 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. Clorox’s payout ratio is 133.33%.

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.