Somerset Trust Co Buys 723 Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Somerset Trust Co grew its position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 14,214 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 723 shares during the quarter. Somerset Trust Co’s holdings in Clorox were worth $2,308,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Clorox in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Clorox by 300.0% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in Clorox by 99.1% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the period. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Clorox during the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Clorox in the 3rd quarter valued at $49,000. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Clorox Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of CLX stock opened at $160.31 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08. The company has a market capitalization of $19.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.42. The Clorox Company has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $171.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $164.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.20.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.50. Clorox had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 316.08%. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. Clorox’s quarterly revenue was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 6.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 170.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CLX. StockNews.com lowered shares of Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Clorox from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Clorox from $153.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen upgraded 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 note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Clorox from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $157.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $156.54.

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.