The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Shares Sold by Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lowered its position in shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) by 30.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,931 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,800 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Clorox were worth $3,562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in Clorox by 163.8% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Clorox in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Clorox by 300.0% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Clorox in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Clorox in the third quarter valued at $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Clorox in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Clorox from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com downgraded Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Clorox presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $158.21.

Clorox Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of CLX opened at $157.00 on Wednesday. The Clorox Company has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $157.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company posted $2.16 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Clorox Company will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 3.11%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 133.33%.

Clorox 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.