Company Description: The Clorox Company is a diversified producer of household cleaning, grocery and specialty food products is also a leading producer of natural personal care products.
Fair Value: In calculating fair value, I consider the NPV MMA Differential Fair Value along with these four calculations of fair value, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
1. Avg. High Yield Price
2. 20-Year DCF Price
3. Avg. P/E Price
4. Graham Number
CLX is trading at a discount to only 1.) above. Since CLX's tangible book value is not meaningful, a Graham number can not be calculated. The stock is trading at a slight discount to its calculated fair value of $65.46. CLX earned a Star in this section since it is trading at a fair value.
Dividend Analytical Data: In this section there are three possible Stars and three key metrics, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
1. Free Cash Flow Payout
2. Debt To Total Capital
3. Key Metrics
4. Dividend Growth Rate
5. Years of Div. Growth
6. Rolling 4-yr Div. > 15%
CLX earned one Star in this section for 3.) above. CLX earned a Star for having an acceptable score in at least two of the four Key Metrics measured. The company has paid a cash dividend to shareholders every year since 1968 and has increased its dividend payments for 36 consecutive years.
Dividend Income vs. MMA: Why would you assume the equity risk and invest in a dividend stock if you could earn a better return in a much less risky money market account (MMA) or Treasury bond? This section compares the earning ability of this stock with a high yield MMA. Two items are considered in this section, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
1. NPV MMA Diff.
2. Years to > MMA
CLX earned a Star in this section for its NPV MMA Diff. of the $2,268. This amount is in excess of the $500 target I look for in a stock that has increased dividends as long as CLX has. The stock's current yield of 3.69% exceeds the 3.6% estimated 20-year average MMA rate.
Memberships and Peers: CLX is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat and a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers™ Index and a Dividend Champion. The company’s peer group includes: Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) with a 3.3% yield, Colgate-Palmolive Co. (CL) with a 2.6% yield, and Kimberly-Clark Corporation (KMB) with a 4.0% yield.
Conclusion: CLX earned one Star in the Fair Value section, earned one Star in the Dividend Analytical Data section and earned one Star in the Dividend Income vs. MMA section for a total of three Stars. This quantitatively ranks CLX as a 3-Star Hold stock.
Using my D4L-PreScreen.xls model, I determined the share price would need to increase to $109.75 before CLX's NPV MMA Differential decreased to the $500 minimum that I look for in a stock with 36 years of consecutive dividend increases. At that price the stock would yield 2.2%.
Resetting the D4L-PreScreen.xls model and solving for the dividend growth rate needed to generate the target $500 NPV MMA Differential, the calculated rate is 3.9%. This dividend growth rate is lower than the 9.1% used in this analysis, thus providing a margin of safety. CLX has a risk rating of 1.25 which classifies it as a Low risk stock.
As a consumer goods company, CLX sells products with a stable demand that are generally not affected by changes in the economy. Its products are well known and include these popular brands: Fresh Step, Brita, Glad, Pine-Sol, Hidden Valley, Scoop Away, K C Masterpiece, S.O.S., Kingsford, Tilex, Formula 409, Liquid-Plumr, and, of coarse, its namesake product, Clorox. The company's presence in the natural home/personal care products arena through Burt's Bees and GreenWorks is viewed positively by environmentalists.
Earlier this year Carl Icahn, who owns about 10% of CLX, attempted to start a bidding war for the company. Like others in its sector, CLX has faced problems with rising commodity costs, difficult year-over-year comps and soft consumer spending. Although the stock is trading below my calculated fair value of $65.46, I am hesitant to add to my position due to its Debt To Total Capital of 103% and Free Cash Flow Payout of 71%. I would like to see these numbers come down before buying additional shares.
Disclaimer: Material presented here is for informational purposes only. The above quantitative stock analysis, including the Star rating, is mechanically calculated and is based on historical information. The analysis assumes the stock will perform in the future as it has in the past. This is generally never true. Before buying or selling any stock you should do your own research and reach your own conclusion. See my Disclaimer for more information.
Full Disclosure: At the time of this writing, I was long in CLX (1.9% of my Dividend Growth Portfolio) and held positions in PG, CL and KMB. See a list of all my dividend growth holdings here.
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Tags: [CLX] [PG] [CL] [KMB]
