Clorox increased its quarterly dividend by 5%
The shares of Clorox Co (NYSE:CLX) are up 1.4% to trade at $204.45 at last check. The household cleaning stock, rapidly rising on the charts since the pandemic began, has now increased its quarterly dividend by 5%, to $1.11 per share. The company has also partnered with United Airlines (UAL), the airliner saying Clorox products will be used at their hubs as a part of "CleanPlus" -- the airlines new commitment to cleanliness.
CLX hasn't had a month in the red since October, and has recently been trading near its mid-March all-time highs. Turned away from the $210 region this week, support at the 10-day moving average has flipped into short-term pressure. Currently, the equity is up 33.1% year-to-date.
Analysts are leaning bearish on Clorox stock, with eight out of 10 sporting a "hold" or worse rating, compared to just two "strong buys." What's more, short interest has risen 7.2% during the past two reporting periods, and the 10.58 million shares sold short now account for 8.5% of the stock's available float, or a little over four days' worth of pent-up buying power.
However, sentiment remains optimistic in the options pits, per CLX's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 2.50 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), that sits higher than 73% of readings from the past year. Today is more of the same, with 4,876 calls and 2,296 puts crossing the tape so far. Most popular by a long shot is the weekly 5/29 205-strike call, where new positions are being opened.
Now may be a good time to weigh in on these options, too, as the stock's Schaeffer’s Volatility Index (SVI) of 26% sits in the 17th percentile of its annual range. In simpler terms, options players are pricing in relatively low volatility expectations at the moment.