Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Boosts Holdings in The Clorox Company $CLX

Key Points

• Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in The Clorox Company by 33.9% in the first quarter, owning 9,688 shares valued at approximately $1.43 million.
• Clorox's recent quarterly earnings exceeded expectations, reporting $2.87 EPS and $1.99 billion in revenue, a 4.5% year-over-year increase.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.24, marking an increase from the previous $1.22 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.9%.

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 33.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 9,688 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,454 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC's holdings in Clorox were worth $1,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CLX. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Clorox in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,005,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 259.4% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 16,410 shares of the company's stock worth $2,664,000 after purchasing an additional 11,844 shares during the last quarter. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new position in shares of Clorox in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,897,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 20.3% in the fourth quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 5,181 shares of the company's stock worth $841,000 after purchasing an additional 876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Clorox by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 5,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $911,000 after acquiring an additional 1,272 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.53% of the company's stock.

Clorox Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of CLX stock traded down $0.66 during mid-day 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 Clorox Company has a 12 month low of $116.53 and a 12 month high of $171.37. The company has a market cap of $15.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.15. The company's 50-day moving average price is $124.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $132.44.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. Clorox had a net margin of 11.40% and a return on equity of 377.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. The company'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. On average, equities analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

CLX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Clorox from $138.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Clorox from $150.00 to $137.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Clorox from $150.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Clorox from $167.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Clorox from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Clorox presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $142.18.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Eric H. Reynolds sold 15,041 shares of Clorox stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.78, for a total value of $1,861,774.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 54,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,711,475.38. The trade was a 21.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.