Clorox Company (The) (CLX) Stock Price & How to Invest
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
You can invest in The Clorox Company (CLX) by buying shares or fractional shares at any major US broker, through a consumer-staples or dividend ETF that holds it, or as one holding in a thematic basket. Clorox is a household-products maker whose brands span cleaning (Clorox bleach and disinfecting wipes), Kingsford charcoal, Hidden Valley dressings, Brita filters, Burt's Bees, Glad bags, and cat litter, so the thesis is a defensive, cash-generative consumer staple with a long dividend track record. The single biggest thing to understand is that Clorox is working through the tail end of a multi-year ERP and operating-model overhaul that has scrambled its recent shipments and share, so near-term sales and earnings comparisons are noisy even though the underlying brands are stable.
CLX stock price
As of 2026-07-14, Clorox Company (The) (CLX) last closed at $93.65, down 26.5% over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks it has traded between $86.12 and $131.43.
Prices are daily closing prices from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. For the live quote, check your broker or Clorox Company (The)'s investor relations page. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
What does Clorox Company (The) (CLX) do?
The Clorox Company is a US consumer-staples business that sells everyday household and personal-care products through four segments: Health and Wellness (Clorox cleaning and disinfecting, professional products, plus vitamins and supplements), Household (Glad bags and wraps, Kingsford charcoal, Fresh Step and Scoop Away cat litter), Lifestyle (Hidden Valley dressings, Brita water filtration, Burt's Bees natural personal care), and International. Because these are low-cost, repeat-purchase staples, demand is relatively stable across economic cycles, which is why Clorox has long been treated as a defensive holding and a dividend aristocrat with decades of consecutive annual increases.
The recent story is dominated by disruption and recovery rather than the brands themselves. After the August 2023 cyberattack, Clorox rebuilt operations and pressed ahead with a multi-year, roughly $500 million-plus digital and ERP transformation. In fiscal 2025 the transition pulled forward shipments as retailers built inventory ahead of the cutover, flattering results, and management flagged that this benefit would reverse in fiscal 2026. Early in fiscal 2026 an elongated ERP ramp-up caused Clorox to lose more market share than expected and pressured sales, and guidance called for a meaningful net-sales decline for the year. Management frames the project as largely complete and now a source of efficiency, shifting focus to rebuilding momentum, restoring shelf presence, and expanding margins through cost savings.
What's driving Clorox Company (The) (CLX)?
1. Defensive staple with durable brands
Clorox sells low-ticket, frequently repurchased essentials (bleach, wipes, trash bags, dressings, water filters) that hold up better than discretionary goods in downturns. Many of its brands hold leading or top-tier category positions, which supports pricing power and shelf space. This defensive profile is the core reason income-oriented and lower-volatility investors look at CLX.
2. ERP transition moving from cost to benefit
The multi-year ERP and operating-model overhaul has been a drag: it distorted shipment timing, hurt on-shelf availability, and cost market share during the ramp. Management now describes the implementation as largely complete and a foundation for efficiency. If distribution normalizes and lost share is recovered, the reversal of transition noise could make comparisons look better as fiscal 2026 progresses.
3. Margin recovery and cost savings
A central part of the story is gross-margin rebuilding through cost-savings programs, pricing, and a leaner streamlined operating model, alongside portfolio simplification. Clorox has divested some non-core businesses to focus on higher-return brands. The pace of margin expansion, more than top-line growth, is what management is emphasizing to investors near term.
4. Dividend track record and capital returns
Clorox is a long-standing dividend aristocrat with decades of consecutive annual increases, and steady payouts plus buybacks are a key part of the total-return case. The sustainability of the dividend rests on cash flow recovering as transition costs fade. For many holders, the reliable, growing payout is the primary reason to own the stock rather than near-term sales growth.
What are the risks to Clorox Company (The) (CLX)?
The near-term risk is execution: the ERP transition already caused lost market share and a guided net-sales decline, and any further disruption or slow recovery of shelf presence would delay the rebound. Clorox competes against much larger, better-resourced rivals (P&G, Church & Dwight, Colgate-Palmolive, Kimberly-Clark, Reckitt) plus private-label and value brands that can pressure pricing and volume when consumers trade down. Input-cost inflation (resins, commodities, freight) and currency swings in the International segment can compress margins. As a mature staple, growth is modest, so a premium valuation leaves little room for missteps. Category-specific shocks, such as demand normalizing after pandemic-era cleaning spikes, can weigh on volumes. Finally, the dividend, while long-growing, depends on cash flow recovering as one-time transition benefits reverse.
How is Clorox Company (The) (CLX) valued? (approximate, Jul 2026)
A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Clorox Company (The)'s investor relations page or your broker.
- Business model: Consumer staples: household cleaning, food, water filtration, natural personal care, cat litter, grilling; sold through four segments
- Revenue scale: Multi-billion-dollar annual net sales; fiscal 2026 guided to a meaningful decline as ERP pull-forward shipments reverse (verify latest figures live)
- Earnings trend: Adjusted EPS was boosted in fiscal 2025 by transition-related shipments; that benefit reverses in fiscal 2026, so reported comparisons are noisy (check current results)
- Margins: Gross-margin rebuilding via cost savings and pricing is a core management focus; qualitative, confirm the latest trend
- Dividend: Dividend aristocrat with decades of consecutive annual increases; yield has recently screened relatively high for the stock (verify current yield and payout)
- Valuation style: Trades as a defensive staple; multiples tend to reflect stability and the dividend rather than growth. Verify live P/E and yield
All figures here are qualitative and tied to the asOf date; Clorox reports on a fiscal year ending in June, and recent results are distorted by ERP-transition shipment timing, so headline growth and EPS comparisons can mislead without adjusting for that. Confirm live revenue, adjusted EPS, margin, dividend yield, and valuation multiples with a current source before acting. Nothing here is a price target or a recommendation.
Who competes with Clorox Company (The) (CLX)?
Large diversified consumer-staples rivals
Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive, Kimberly-Clark, Unilever, Henkel, and Reckitt are far larger, better-capitalized peers that compete across cleaning, personal care, and home care. Their scale in R&D, advertising, and retail relationships pressures Clorox on price and shelf space, especially when Clorox is recovering distribution after the ERP disruption.
Focused household and value brands
Church & Dwight (Arm & Hammer, OxiClean) and S.C. Johnson compete directly in cleaning and home care with value-focused and niche brands. Church & Dwight in particular is a nimble competitor whose value positioning can win share when consumers trade down, a direct threat to several Clorox categories.
Private label and category specialists
Retailer private-label brands undercut Clorox on price across bleach, wipes, trash bags, and dressings, and category specialists compete in niches like water filtration (against Brita) and natural personal care (against Burt's Bees). Private label tends to gain when household budgets tighten, capping Clorox's pricing power.
How to invest in Clorox Company (The) (CLX)
There are three common ways to get CLX exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it, which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic basket, so CLX sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.
Walnut takes the basket route. Describe a thesis where CLX fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.
The bottom line on Clorox Company (The) (CLX)
Clorox is a defensive consumer-staples dividend name with durable everyday brands, now emerging from a costly ERP transition that distorted recent results. The debate is whether margin recovery and steady payouts outweigh soft near-term sales and lost market share, not whether the brands endure.
Build a basket around CLX with Walnut
Use Clorox Company (The) as one constituent in a thematic basket Walnut's AI helps you assemble. Describe a thesis you believe in, the AI proposes the holdings and weights, and you approve before any broker order.
FAQ
Is CLX a good stock to buy right now?
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That depends on your goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance, and this is not investment advice. The case for CLX is a defensive staple with durable brands, a long dividend-growth record, and a margin-recovery story as the ERP transition finishes. The case against is soft near-term sales, lost market share during the ramp, mature growth, and stiff competition from larger rivals and private label. Weigh both against your portfolio and verify current results and valuation.
What does Clorox actually sell?
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Clorox makes everyday household and personal-care products across four segments. Well-known brands include Clorox bleach and disinfecting wipes, Pine-Sol, Glad bags and wraps, Kingsford charcoal, Fresh Step and Scoop Away cat litter, Hidden Valley dressings, Brita water filters, and Burt's Bees natural personal care. Most are low-cost, frequently repurchased staples, which gives demand a defensive, steady profile.
Why have Clorox's recent results been so noisy?
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Clorox has been implementing a multi-year ERP and operating-model overhaul, part of a large digital transformation begun after the 2023 cyberattack. Retailers built inventory ahead of the system cutover, which pulled forward shipments and flattered fiscal 2025, and that benefit reverses in fiscal 2026. The elongated ramp also hurt on-shelf availability and cost market share, so headline comparisons need adjusting for transition effects.
Is Clorox a dividend aristocrat?
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Yes. Clorox has raised its dividend for decades in a row, well beyond the 25-consecutive-year threshold for dividend aristocrat status. The growing, reliable payout is a central reason income-focused investors hold the stock. As always, confirm the latest declared dividend, yield, and payout ratio before assuming any specific income, since payouts depend on cash flow recovering as transition costs fade.
Who are Clorox's main competitors?
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Clorox competes with much larger diversified staples companies like Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive, Kimberly-Clark, Unilever, and Reckitt, plus focused rivals such as Church & Dwight (Arm & Hammer, OxiClean) and S.C. Johnson. It also faces retailer private-label brands that undercut on price. This crowded field limits pricing power and makes recovering lost shelf space harder.
How did the 2023 cyberattack affect Clorox?
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The August 2023 cyberattack disrupted Clorox's operations and order processing, causing product shortages and lost sales, and it briefly halted the ERP upgrade. The company rebuilt operations and later resumed the transformation. While the direct operational hit is in the past, the episode reshaped the timeline and cost of the ERP overhaul that still dominates recent results.
Is Clorox a defensive stock?
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Generally yes. Because it sells low-cost, repeat-purchase essentials, Clorox's demand tends to hold up better than discretionary goods in downturns, and consumer-staples stocks often show lower volatility than the broad market. That said, defensive does not mean risk-free: execution missteps, competition, input costs, and a full valuation can still pressure the stock, as recent share losses show.
What are the main risks of investing in CLX?
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Key risks include continued execution issues from the ERP transition, lost market share taking time to recover, and a guided near-term sales decline. Clorox also faces intense competition from larger rivals and private label, input-cost inflation, currency swings internationally, and only modest structural growth. A premium staples valuation leaves limited room for disappointment, and the dividend depends on cash flow rebuilding.
How can I get exposure to Clorox through an ETF?
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CLX appears in many consumer-staples, dividend, and broad US large-cap ETFs, where it sits among household-products names. ETF exposure spreads single-stock risk across many holdings but dilutes how much a Clorox move affects you. Check a fund's holdings and weighting before assuming meaningful exposure to Clorox specifically.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Financial figures on this page are approximations; always verify current numbers with Clorox Company (The)'s investor relations page or your broker before making investment decisions.