AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs Purchases New Shares in The Clorox Company $CLX

Key Points

• AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs acquired a new position in The Clorox Company, purchasing 5,231 shares valued at approximately $770,000 in the first quarter.
• Clorox recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $1.24 per share, reflecting a 4.0% yield and showing a commitment to returning value to shareholders.
• Several analysts have cut their price targets for Clorox stock, with Morgan Stanley reducing its target from $150.00 to $137.00 and maintaining an "equal weight" rating.

AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs purchased a new position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 5,231 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $770,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC grew its position in Clorox by 2.5% in the first quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC now owns 2,940 shares of the company's stock valued at $433,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in shares of Clorox by 0.6% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 13,266 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,953,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in Clorox by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 1,768 shares of the company's stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Sfmg LLC grew its stake in Clorox by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 2,780 shares of the company's stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 2,064 shares of the company's stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Clorox

In other news, COO Eric H. Reynolds sold 15,041 shares of Clorox stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.78, for a total transaction of $1,861,774.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 54,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,711,475.38. The trade was a 21.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CLX shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on Clorox from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Clorox from $138.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Clorox from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Clorox from $150.00 to $137.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $135.00 target price (down previously from $140.00) on shares of Clorox in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Clorox has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $142.18.

Clorox Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE CLX traded up $1.97 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $124.79. The company had a trading volume of 1,737,307 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,784,062. The Clorox Company has a one year low of $116.53 and a one year high of $171.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.15. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $124.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $131.86. The stock has a market cap of $15.26 billion, a PE ratio of 19.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.52.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.63. Clorox had a return on equity of 377.86% and a net margin of 11.40%.The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Clorox has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.950-6.30 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 13th. This is an increase from Clorox's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Clorox's dividend payout ratio is 76.07%.

Clorox 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.