Adirondack Trust Co. Trims Position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Adirondack Trust Co. lowered its stake in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 17.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 350 shares of the company’s stock after selling 75 shares during the period. Adirondack Trust Co.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $57,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its stake in shares of Clorox by 163.8% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox during the third quarter worth $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in Clorox by 300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its position in Clorox by 99.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Clorox in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Price Performance

Clorox stock opened at $158.91 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $163.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $157.11. The Clorox Company has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.67 billion, a PE ratio of 55.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.42.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.50. Clorox had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 316.08%. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 6.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 29th will be given a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 170.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Clorox from $139.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Clorox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $174.00 to $187.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised Clorox from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $157.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Clorox from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Clorox from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Clorox presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $156.54.

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.