LPL Financial LLC Purchases 37,538 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in The Clorox Company by 12.7%, owning approximately 334,041 shares valued at about $49.2 million by the end of the first quarter.
• The Clorox Company recently reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, while its revenue rose by 4.5% year-over-year to $1.99 billion.
• Clorox announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.24 per share, with a dividend yield of 4.0%, reflecting its strong financial performance.

LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 12.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 334,041 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 37,538 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.27% of Clorox worth $49,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Texas Yale Capital Corp. lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 14,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,097,000 after acquiring an additional 1,509 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Clorox by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 155,767 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,937,000 after purchasing an additional 6,105 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its holdings in Clorox by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,385 shares of the company's stock valued at $646,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Clorox by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,951 shares of the company's stock valued at $729,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its holdings in Clorox by 167.9% during the 1st quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 115,502 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,008,000 after purchasing an additional 72,395 shares during the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Clorox Price Performance

Shares of CLX traded down $2.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $123.06. The company had a trading volume of 3,928,421 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,666,065. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $126.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $139.14. The Clorox Company has a 1-year low of $117.35 and a 1-year high of $171.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.07, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.74. The company has a market capitalization of $15.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.49.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.63. Clorox had a net margin of 11.40% and a return on equity of 538.72%. The business had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.82 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. This is a positive change from Clorox's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Clorox's payout ratio is presently 87.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CLX shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Clorox from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays reduced their price target 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. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $135.00 target price (down previously from $140.00) on shares of Clorox in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Clorox from $150.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Clorox from $167.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $144.00.

Insider Transactions at Clorox

In other news, Director Pierre R. Breber acquired 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $136.57 per share, with a total value of $546,280.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 4,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $546,280. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.