The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Shares Acquired by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in The Clorox Company to 155,767 shares, worth approximately $22.94 million.
• Multiple hedge funds have recently adjusted their holdings in Clorox, with 78.53% of the stock currently owned by institutional investors.
• Wall Street analysts have lowered their price targets for Clorox, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $144.83.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 4.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 155,767 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,105 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned 0.13% of Clorox worth $22,937,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Clorox by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,098,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $501,925,000 after purchasing an additional 69,969 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Clorox by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,344,408 shares of the company's stock valued at $380,761,000 after purchasing an additional 9,582 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Clorox by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,494,265 shares of the company's stock valued at $242,684,000 after purchasing an additional 230,173 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Clorox by 28.7% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,421,909 shares of the company's stock valued at $230,932,000 after purchasing an additional 316,688 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Clorox by 75.4% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,361,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,163,000 after purchasing an additional 585,526 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CLX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays decreased their price target on Clorox from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on Clorox and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $135.00 price target (down previously from $140.00) on shares of Clorox in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Clorox from $150.00 to $137.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Clorox from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $144.00.

Clorox Trading Down 1.5%

CLX traded down $1.95 during trading on Friday, hitting $123.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,900,819 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,621,846. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $126.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $139.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.07, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market cap of $15.24 billion, a PE ratio of 22.15, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.51. The Clorox Company has a twelve month low of $117.35 and a twelve month high of $171.37.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.63. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. Clorox had a return on equity of 324.23% and a net margin of 9.89%. Clorox's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. On average, analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. This is a boost from Clorox's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. Clorox's payout ratio is presently 87.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Clorox news, Director Pierre R. Breber purchased 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $136.57 per share, for a total transaction of $546,280.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 4,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $546,280. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

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.