Stifel Financial Corp Increases Stock Position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,334,826 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 37,967 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned about 1.89% of Clorox worth $380,370,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Clorox during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Clorox during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Clorox by 139.8% during the second quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 223 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in Clorox by 99.1% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Clorox Trading Up 1.3 %

Clorox stock traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $169.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 929,635 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,233,357. The Clorox Company has a 1 year low of $127.60 and a 1 year high of $171.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.01 billion, a PE ratio of 58.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.42. The stock's fifty day moving average is $163.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $150.02.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.08% and a net margin of 4.78%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that The Clorox Company will post 6.85 EPS for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 dividend yield of 2.87%. Clorox's payout ratio is currently 170.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CLX has been the topic of several recent research reports. BNP Paribas upgraded Clorox to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. TD Cowen raised shares of Clorox from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $155.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Clorox from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $174.00 to $187.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Clorox from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Clorox presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $155.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Clorox

In related news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of Clorox stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $286,846.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,471 shares in the company, valued at $2,229,719.92. The trade was a 11.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.