Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Boosts Stock Position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its holdings in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,193 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 336 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Clorox were worth $2,143,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CLX. Wealth Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in Clorox during the third quarter worth approximately $231,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its position in Clorox by 256.4% in the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $181,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 8.0% during the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $604,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox during the third quarter worth about $214,000. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,000 after purchasing an additional 811 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of CLX stock opened at $147.08 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $161.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $159.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.21 billion, a PE ratio of 40.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The Clorox Company has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $171.37.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.16. Clorox had a net margin of 6.38% and a return on equity of 316.87%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.16 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th will be issued a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 29th. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Clorox from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Clorox from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $158.21.

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.