US Asset Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

US Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,136 shares of the company’s stock after selling 95 shares during the quarter. US Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Clorox were worth $291,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 4th quarter valued at $101,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Clorox by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 170,289 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,099,000 after buying an additional 16,016 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Clorox by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 123,727 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,642,000 after acquiring an additional 5,791 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Clorox by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 23,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,314,000 after purchasing an additional 2,222 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Clorox by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 25,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,604,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE CLX opened at $166.26 on Friday. The Clorox Company has a 52-week low of $114.68 and a 52-week high of $167.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $146.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.38. The firm has a market cap of $20.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 86.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.40.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Clorox had a return on equity of 281.12% and a net margin of 3.95%. Equities analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 6.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 14th were paid a $1.22 dividend. This is an increase from Clorox’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is currently 252.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on CLX. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Clorox in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $122.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Clorox from $150.00 to $148.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Clorox from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $286,846.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,471 shares in the company, valued at $2,229,719.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.