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 raised its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 12.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 334,041 shares of the company's stock after buying 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 quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in shares of Clorox by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 9,271 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,506,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Clorox by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 8,448 shares of the company's stock worth $1,372,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Clorox by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,074 shares of the company's stock worth $662,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Clorox by 76.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 250,495 shares of the company's stock worth $40,683,000 after purchasing an additional 108,631 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Clorox by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 3,878 shares of the company's stock valued at $630,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the period. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Clorox

In other Clorox news, Director Pierre R. Breber purchased 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $136.57 per share, with a total value of $546,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,000 shares in the company, valued at $546,280. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Clorox from $144.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $135.00 target price (down previously from $140.00) on shares of Clorox in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Clorox from $150.00 to $137.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 target price on shares of Clorox and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Clorox from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $143.36.

Clorox Stock Up 1.2%

CLX traded up $1.46 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $125.65. 888,872 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,634,954. The Clorox Company has a 1-year low of $117.35 and a 1-year high of $171.37. The stock's 50-day moving average is $125.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.61. The stock has a market cap of $15.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.15.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.63. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.94 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 11.40% and a return on equity of 377.86%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This is a boost from Clorox's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Clorox's payout ratio is currently 74.85%.

Clorox Company 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.