Nuveen Asset Management LLC Cuts Stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 259,217 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,798 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.21% of Clorox worth $42,099,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CLX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Clorox by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,507,152 shares of the company's stock worth $2,518,517,000 after purchasing an additional 124,428 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Clorox by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,098,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $501,925,000 after buying an additional 69,969 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,344,408 shares of the company's stock valued at $380,761,000 after acquiring an additional 9,582 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Clorox in the 4th quarter worth approximately $259,041,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,494,265 shares of the company's stock worth $242,684,000 after buying an additional 230,173 shares in the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Clorox

In other Clorox news, Director Pierre R. Breber bought 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $136.57 per share, for a total transaction of $546,280.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $546,280. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on CLX shares. Barclays decreased their target price on Clorox from $134.00 to $129.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Clorox in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup cut their price target on Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Clorox presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $151.23.

Clorox Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE:CLX opened at $134.81 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $16.62 billion, a PE ratio of 36.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.60. The Clorox Company has a twelve month low of $127.60 and a twelve month high of $171.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The company's 50 day moving average is $140.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.09.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.74 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 6.38% and a return on equity of 316.87%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.71 EPS. Analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd were paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Clorox's payout ratio is 87.61%.

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.

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