Inspire Trust Co. N.A. Boosts Stake in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Inspire Trust Co. N.A. lifted its stake in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,000 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,173 shares during the period. Inspire Trust Co. N.A.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $3,086,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CLX. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Clorox during the 4th quarter worth about $259,041,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 75.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,361,758 shares of the company’s stock worth $221,163,000 after purchasing an additional 585,526 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 549.8% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 542,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,144,000 after purchasing an additional 459,203 shares during the period. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP boosted its position in Clorox by 187.9% in the fourth quarter. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP now owns 698,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,508,000 after buying an additional 456,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc increased its holdings in Clorox by 154.6% in the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 570,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,655,000 after buying an additional 346,449 shares during the period. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Clorox Stock Performance

NYSE:CLX opened at $131.90 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.26 billion, a PE ratio of 36.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.60. The Clorox Company has a fifty-two week low of $127.60 and a fifty-two week high of $171.37. The company has a fifty day moving average of $140.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.82.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by ($0.12). Clorox had a return on equity of 316.87% and a net margin of 6.38%. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.71 earnings per share. Clorox’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd were issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 23rd. Clorox’s payout ratio is 87.61%.

Insider Transactions at Clorox

In other Clorox news, Director Pierre R. Breber purchased 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $546,280. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on shares of Clorox and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Clorox from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Clorox from $134.00 to $129.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Clorox in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $151.23.

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.