Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Acquires 55,600 Shares of The Clorox Company $CLX

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. significantly increased its holdings in The Clorox Company by 97.8%, owning over 112,000 shares worth approximately $16.56 million following an additional purchase of 55,600 shares.
• Following recent financial assessments, several analysts downgraded their price targets for Clorox, with revisions reflecting a consensus price target of $142.64, indicating a generally cautious outlook for the stock.
• Clorox also increased its quarterly dividend to $1.24 per share, representing an annual yield of 3.9%, reflecting confidence in its earnings performance despite the recent stock price adjustments.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 97.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 112,453 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 55,600 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.09% of Clorox worth $16,559,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CLX. Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its position in Clorox by 15.6% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 269,926 shares of the company's stock worth $39,747,000 after purchasing an additional 36,352 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 1st quarter worth about $247,000. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 1st quarter worth about $399,000. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 1st quarter worth about $400,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its stake in Clorox by 33.5% in the 1st quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 28,510 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,198,000 after buying an additional 7,159 shares during the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Clorox Price Performance

NYSE CLX traded up $1.11 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $124.44. The company had a trading volume of 1,585,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,802,874. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $124.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $132.67. The company has a market capitalization of $15.22 billion, a PE ratio of 19.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.15. The Clorox Company has a twelve month low of $116.53 and a twelve month high of $171.37.

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

Clorox Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were given a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 13th. This is a boost from Clorox's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Clorox's dividend payout ratio is presently 76.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Clorox

In related news, COO Eric H. Reynolds sold 15,041 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief operating officer owned 54,221 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,711,475.38. This trade represents a 21.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CLX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on 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 dropped their price target on Clorox from $167.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Clorox from $150.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Clorox from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $142.18.

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.