The Clorox Company (CLX) Q1 2027 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q1 net sales rose 33% to $1.905B; organic sales increased 18%, including 15 points from GOJO and reflecting the ERP-transition comparison.

• Adjusted EPS rose 82% to $1.55; results benefited from cost savings and favorable timing, while higher inflation intensified margin pressure.

• Priorities include brand superiority, innovation, market-share improvement, GOJO integration and shifting ERP work toward optimization and value creation.

Financial highlights

• Gross margin fell 130 bps to 40.4% from 41.7%; higher commodity, manufacturing and logistics costs outweighed volume and savings, with GOJO inventory step-up adding ~50 bps of pressure.

• Net earnings attributable to Clorox rose to $170M from $80M; diluted EPS increased to $1.39 from $0.65.

• FY27 input-cost inflation is estimated at $240M, $40M above the start-of-year estimate; Q1 cost savings ranked among the highest quarterly totals on record.

• Net cash from operations increased 54% to $143M from $93M, mainly on higher cash earnings, partly offset by working capital.

Outlook and guidance

• FY27 net sales guidance is up 13%–14%, including ~9.5 points from GOJO; organic growth is 3.5%–4.5%, with more than 3.5 points from the ERP comparison and flat to slightly up excluding it.

• FY27 gross margin is expected at ~41.5%; higher-than-normal inflation and negative mix are expected to outweigh savings and pricing, with recovery actions building in H2.

• Diluted EPS guidance remains $5.41–$5.71 and adjusted EPS $5.70–$6.00; adjusted results are expected near the low end amid higher cost pressures.

• S&A is expected at ~15.5% of sales, including ~40 bps of GOJO transaction-cost impact; advertising and sales promotion are expected at ~10% overall and ~12% in U.S. retail.

• Q2 net sales are expected up 11%–13%, including ~13 points from GOJO; organic sales are expected flat to down 2% and gross margin ~40%.