Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC reduced its holdings in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 37.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,776 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,053 shares during the period. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in Clorox were worth $289,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CLX. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Clorox by 1,715.5% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,461,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,411,000 after buying an additional 1,380,724 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Clorox during the fourth quarter worth $144,844,000. Nuance Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Clorox by 150.6% during the second quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 1,597,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,035,000 after buying an additional 960,094 shares in the last quarter. Parsifal Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Clorox during the fourth quarter worth $128,245,000. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Clorox during the first quarter worth $135,630,000. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Clorox Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CLX opened at $159.81 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $155.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $144.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04. The Clorox Company has a 52 week low of $114.68 and a 52 week high of $169.09.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.28. Clorox had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 281.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 6.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be issued a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is currently 252.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CLX shares. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Clorox to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Clorox from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Clorox from $122.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Six research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $146.13.

Insider Activity at Clorox

In related news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 13,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,229,719.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by 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.