The Clorox Company (CLX) is a publicly traded company in the Consumer Defensive — Household & Personal Products industry listed on NYSE. This overview shows the latest price, key valuation ratios, profitability metrics and financial-health indicators used by fundamental investors.
The Clorox Company is a global manufacturer and marketer of both consumer and professional products, operating through four distinct segments: Health and Wellness, Household, Lifestyle, and International. The Health and Wellness division offers a range of cleaning solutions, including laundry additives and home care items under brand names such as Clorox, Clorox2, Scentiva, Pine-Sol, Liquid-Plumr, Tilex, and Formula 409.
Is The Clorox Company stock overvalued or undervalued in 2026?
The Clorox Company (CLX) trades at 18.3× earnings (P/E), below the median of the 95 consumer staples companies over $2bn in Kaplio's universe. At the decade median (26.5×) $128 (+45 %); at its sector median (22.4×) $108 (+23 %).
Kaplio overview: The Clorox Company
Market cap $11B · 52 weeks $80 – $127 (30 % below the high) · P/E 18.3× · 2027 expected P/E 15.5× · Dividend 5.7 % · 11 years rising · Next earnings November 2, 2026 · expected EPS $1.07 · Closing price, Oct 30 · accounts published Aug 3.
- Valuation: P/E 18.3× (cheap).
- Business: ROIC 20 % (solid).
- Balance sheet: Net debt/EBITDA 5.8× (fragile).
- Earnings: 6 of 8 (uneven).
What would it be worth at its usual multiples?
At the decade median (26.5×) $128 (+45 %); at its sector median (22.4×) $108 (+23 %). Implied price from applying the reference multiples to today's earnings (or book value, or FFO) per share. Not a fair value: it is where the stock would trade at its usual multiples.
What matters in consumer staples: 2 of 8 pass
- Stable ROE / ROIC −18.9 %, fails.
- FCF / Net Income 69.0 %, fails.
- 10y dividend growth 4.9 %, fails.
- 10y EPS growth −0.4 %, fails.
- Payout Ratio 102.6 %, fails.
- Net debt / EBITDA 5.8×, fails.
- Gross margin (stable 5y) 42.3 %, passes.
- P/E vs own 10y history 18.3×, passes.
Against its peers (reference peers) — The Clorox Company: P/E 18.3×; EV/EBITDA 13.7×; ROIC 20.4 %; $10.6B. Reynolds Consumer Products Inc. (P/E 14.4×; EV/EBITDA 10.5×; ROIC 9.2 %; $5.0B), Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (P/E 33.0×; EV/EBITDA 21.1×; ROIC 11.1 %; $25.4B), Kimberly-Clark Corporation (P/E 18.4×; EV/EBITDA 13.0×; ROIC 12.5 %; $35.9B).
Expensive or cheap against its last ten years?
P/E at each close: today 18.3× · median 26.5× · minimum 16.7× · maximum 75.1× · cheap below 24.6× · expensive above 40.1×. It has been cheaper than today only 1% of the time over its last ten years.
Dividend
fragile · Yield 5.7 % ($4.94 per share in 2026) · Years raising it ≥ 11 · 5-year growth +2 % a year · Free cash flow coverage 0.9× · With $1,000 invested today you'd collect $56.60 a year ($4.72 a month).
Kaplio's reading: The Clorox Company
Updated on October 19, 2026 · accounts published on August 3, 2026
A highly profitable business with record margins, shrinking sales and heavy debt
Clorox trades at a P/E of 18.3× over the last 12 months, 31 % below its ten-year median, a level seen only 1 % of the time in the past decade.
- Is Clorox expensive or cheap? Its P/E is 31 % below its ten-year median, and the stock has traded lower only 1 % of the time over the last decade.
- How is the business doing? The operating margin reached 25 % in fiscal 2026, the best in 12 years, but EPS fell 26 % over the last 12 months.
- How strong is the balance sheet? Net debt is 5.8× EBITDA in fiscal 2026, more than double the 2.5× level the sector considers healthy.
- What to expect from the next earnings? Clorox reports on November 2, 2026. Analysts expect EPS of $1.08, and 21 of the 29 who cover it rate it a hold.
- Is it as stable as the sector promises? Clorox passes 2 of 8 consumer-staples checks: gross margin and P/E pass, while debt, payout, cash and growth fail.
Is Clorox expensive or cheap?
Over the last 12 months Clorox trades at a P/E of 18.3×. Its ten-year median is 26.5×, and over the decade the multiple has ranged from 16.7× to 75.1×. It is also cheaper than its peers: the sector median P/E is 22.5×, which leaves Clorox 20 % below it. A free cash flow yield of 11 % over the last 12 months says the multiple is low on cash as well as on earnings. The market is pricing in the earnings decline. The stock is down 20 % over the last 12 months and sits 30 % below its 52-week high of $127.16.
How is the business doing?
Clorox looks stronger on margins than on growth. Its operating margin of 25 % in fiscal 2026 is the highest of the 12 fiscal years since 2015, well above the 17 % average for that period. Return on invested capital is 19 % over the last 12 months, about 12 points above the sector median of 9 %, and has stayed above 10 % in each of the last ten fiscal years. Sales and earnings tell a weaker story. Over the last 12 months revenue fell 5.4 % and EPS fell 26 %, and the net margin is a much thinner 8.7 %.
How strong is the balance sheet?
Debt is the weak point. Net debt was $45.22 per share in fiscal 2026, equal to 51 % of the current share price, and 5.8× EBITDA against a healthy ceiling of 2.5× for consumer staples. A debt-to-equity ratio of 61.3 over the last 12 months points to a very thin equity base, so ROE (−18.9 %) and P/B (119.1×) say little about the business. A current ratio of 0.66 and an Altman Z of 2.4, in the grey zone, offer little cushion. The dividend yields 5.7 % and has risen for 11 straight fiscal years, but the payout reached 103 % of earnings in fiscal 2026.
What to expect from the next earnings?
Analysts are cautious. Of the 29 covering Clorox, 3 recommend buying, 21 holding and 5 selling. Over the last 30 days the fiscal 2027 EPS consensus from 11 analysts slipped 1.4 %, from $5.79 to $5.71, while the revenue consensus barely moved. For the quarter due on November 2, 2026, analysts expect EPS of $1.08. The last report, on August 3, 2026, showed EPS of $1.66, 1.2 % above the $1.64 expected. Clorox has beaten EPS estimates in 6 of the last 8 quarters, so the next thing to watch is whether the estimate cuts continue.
Is it as stable as the sector promises?
Investors judge consumer staples on steadiness. These boring businesses are bought for predictable cash and a dividend that keeps growing, so the checks focus on margins, cash conversion, payout and debt rather than fast growth. Clorox's gross margin holds up: 42 % in fiscal 2026, above the stable threshold of 35 %. The rest falls short. In fiscal 2026 free cash flow covered 69 % of net income, against a healthy 90 %. Over 2016-2026 the dividend grew 4.9 % a year, below the 6 % benchmark, and EPS shrank 0.4 % a year over the same period.
How this was prepared: the data comes from companies' official filings, collected by a professional provider, and from Kaplio's analysis engine (trailing-12-month ratios, 10 years of history and sector medians computed across US-listed companies). The text is written from that data alone, every figure is checked against it before publication, and it is reviewed when the company reports results. This is not investment advice.
Investor methods verdict
Would Buffett approve Clorox today?
The Buffett Method would not approve Clorox today: it fails its quality rules. Business quality: 63 out of 100 (price not included). Kaplio assessment with data from the week of 2026-10-26; not investment advice.
Profitability
| Return on Equity | -1,893.55% |
| Return on Invested Capital | 20.39% |
| Return on Assets | 7.53% |
| Gross Margin | 42.32% |
| Operating Margin | 24.73% |
| Net Margin | 8.74% |
Financial Health
| Debt / Equity | 61.33 |
| Current Ratio | 0.66 |
| Piotroski F-Score | 4 |
| Altman Z-Score | 2.41 |
Price Performance
| 1 month | +9.11% |
| 3 months | -7.88% |
| Year-to-date | -12.72% |
| 1 year | -21.75% |
| 3 years | -23.73% |
| 5 years | -46.14% |
| 10 years | -23.92% |
Dividend History
Paid in the last 12 months: $4.9800 per share in 4 payments.
| Date | Amount |
|---|---|
| 2026-10-28 | $1.2500 |
| 2026-08-12 | $1.2500 |
| 2026-04-22 | $1.2400 |
| 2026-01-28 | $1.2400 |
| 2025-10-22 | $1.2400 |
| 2025-08-13 | $1.2400 |
| 2025-04-23 | $1.2200 |
| 2025-01-29 | $1.2200 |
| 2024-10-23 | $1.2200 |
| 2024-08-14 | $1.2200 |
Amounts adjusted for stock splits.
Related companies: KMB · REYN · PG · UL · CL · KVUE · CHD
Explore sector: Consumer Defensive · Household & Personal Products
More sections of CLX: Financials · Valuation · Statistics · Estimates · Technical · Ownership · News · Events
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