Candriam S.C.A. Buys 2,179 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Candriam S.C.A. lifted its holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 16.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 15,376 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,179 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Clorox were worth $2,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in Clorox by 163.8% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Clorox during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in Clorox by 300.0% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Clorox during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Clorox during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Price Performance

NYSE:CLX opened at $151.11 on Monday. The Clorox Company has a 1 year low of $127.60 and a 1 year high of $171.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.29, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.47.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.16. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.87% and a net margin of 6.38%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.16 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CLX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Clorox from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays upped their price target on Clorox from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 5th. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $159.62.

About Clorox

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.