Natixis Cuts Position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Natixis trimmed its holdings in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 93.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,997 shares of the company's stock after selling 109,681 shares during the period. Natixis' holdings in Clorox were worth $1,299,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in Clorox by 163.8% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 153 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Clorox in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Clorox during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on CLX shares. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Clorox from $176.00 to $154.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com downgraded Clorox from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $153.83.

Clorox Price Performance

Shares of CLX opened at $141.99 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $17.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.80, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.61. The Clorox Company has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $146.19 and a 200-day moving average of $156.10.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 3.44%. Clorox's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.33%.

Clorox 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.

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