Versor Investments LP Makes New Investment in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)

Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $763,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Clorox in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Clorox by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 191,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,266,000 after purchasing an additional 10,149 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Clorox by 43.4% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 29,865 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,865,000 after purchasing an additional 9,037 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Clorox by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 63,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,341,000 after purchasing an additional 4,839 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Clorox by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 723,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,932,000 after purchasing an additional 13,038 shares during the period. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Clorox Trading Up 1.4 %

Clorox stock opened at $156.52 on Friday. 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 business’s fifty day simple moving average is $156.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $160.15. The Clorox Company has a 12 month low of $127.60 and a 12 month high of $171.37. The company has a market capitalization of $19.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.42.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.16. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.87% and a net margin of 6.38%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be issued a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CLX shares. TD Cowen raised Clorox from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $155.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays boosted their target price on Clorox from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $158.21.

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.