Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 14,765 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 18.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,531 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,765 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.05% of Clorox worth $10,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CLX. 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 worth $25,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Clorox during the third quarter worth approximately $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 worth $30,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in Clorox during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company's stock.

Clorox Price Performance

NYSE CLX traded up $2.14 on Friday, hitting $156.52. 1,498,518 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,378,293. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $156.88 and a 200-day moving average of $160.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The Clorox Company has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.37. The stock has a market cap of $19.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.42.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. Analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. Clorox's payout ratio is presently 133.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen raised Clorox from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the company from $155.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com downgraded Clorox from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four investment 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, Clorox presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.21.

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.