Alliancebernstein L.P. Sells 42,963 Shares of The Clorox Company $CLX

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. has reduced its stake in The Clorox Company by 17.2% during the first quarter, holding approximately $30.56 million worth of stocks as of the latest SEC filings.
• Clorox recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.24, marking an increase from the previous dividend, which reflects a strong commitment to returning value to shareholders.
• Multiple analysts have downgraded their price targets for Clorox, with average target prices now in the range of $130 to $142, indicating mixed sentiments about the company's future performance.

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 17.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 207,532 shares of the company's stock after selling 42,963 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 0.17% of Clorox worth $30,559,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CLX. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Clorox by 412.1% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 598,758 shares of the company's stock worth $88,167,000 after buying an additional 481,846 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Clorox by 12.6% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,308 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,935,000 after acquiring an additional 4,505 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in Clorox by 97.8% during the first quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 112,453 shares of the company's stock worth $16,559,000 after buying an additional 55,600 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Clorox by 3.5% during the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,103 shares of the company's stock worth $1,046,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 66.4% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 8,984 shares of the company's stock worth $1,323,000 after acquiring an additional 3,586 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.53% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Clorox

In related news, COO Eric H. Reynolds sold 15,041 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.78, for a total transaction of $1,861,774.98. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 54,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,711,475.38. This trade represents a 21.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Clorox Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Clorox stock traded down $0.66 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $123.75. 1,519,075 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,811,479. The company has a market cap of $15.14 billion, a PE ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $124.30 and a 200-day moving average of $132.67. The Clorox Company has a 12 month low of $116.53 and a 12 month high of $171.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.15, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.84.

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

Clorox Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were paid a $1.24 dividend. This is an increase from Clorox's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. 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. Clorox's payout ratio is currently 76.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CLX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Clorox from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Clorox from $167.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Clorox from $150.00 to $137.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $135.00 target price (down from $140.00) on shares of Clorox in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Clorox from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Clorox currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $142.18.

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.