17,042 Shares in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Purchased by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 17,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,768,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CLX. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in Clorox by 163.8% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Clorox in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Clorox by 300.0% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Clorox Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of CLX opened at $145.46 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $17.92 billion, a PE ratio of 39.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s fifty day moving average is $153.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $159.87. 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 quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 6.38% and a return on equity of 316.87%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.16 EPS. Analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Clorox’s payout ratio is 133.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CLX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Clorox from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.