Legal & General Group Plc Invests $40.22 Million in The Clorox Company $CLX

Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 421,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,224,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caitlin John LLC increased its holdings in Clorox by 1,807.1% in the fourth quarter. Caitlin John LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Clorox in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in Clorox by 83.8% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 318 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on CLX shares. Evercore set a $99.00 target price on Clorox in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Clorox from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Clorox in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Clorox from $110.00 to $97.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $83.00 target price on shares of Clorox in a report on Friday, May 1st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $102.40.

Clorox Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:CLX opened at $102.57 on Friday. The Clorox Company has a 52-week low of $84.70 and a 52-week high of $128.90. The stock has a market cap of $12.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.28, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a fifty day moving average of $99.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $102.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.80.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.02. Clorox had a net margin of 8.74% and a return on equity of 522.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.87 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Clorox has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.700-6.000 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 12th. This is a boost from Clorox’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is presently 103.73%.

Clorox Company Profile

The Clorox Company is a leading manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products designed to help people care for their homes and live healthy, sustainable lives. Its portfolio spans cleaning and household products, food and beverages, water filtration systems and cat litter, serving both retail and institutional customers. The company’s flagship bleach and disinfecting products are well known in the United States and many international markets, where they help prevent the spread of germs in homes, hospitals, schools and businesses.

Clorox’s diverse brand lineup includes liquid bleach and surface cleaners, eco-friendly cleaning tools, food preservation and preparation items, charcoal grills and briquettes, specialty foods and beverages, pet care products and personal care lines.