Clorox Co.’s second-quarter earnings at a glance

Clorox Co.’s second-quarter earnings at a glance

Clorox Co. has spent heavily on advertising during the national economic downturn to help keep shoppers loyal to its brands. That paid off in a 5 percent increase in sales in the second quarter and strong profit.

The company’s revenue also got a lift for the third quarter in a row from sales of Clorox disinfectant wipes as a result of the H1N1 flu pandemic.

Clorox earned $110 million in October through December, or 77 cents per share, up 28 percent from $86 million, or 61 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose to $1.28 billion from $1.22 billion.

Here’s how each segment did:

— CLEANING — including Clorox wipes, Clorox toilet and bathroom cleaners and Armor All auto-care products:

Sales rose 3 percent.

Volume rose 8 percent.

— HOUSEHOLD — including Fresh Step cat litter, Glad trash bags and Kingsford charcoal:

Sales fell 6 percent.

Volume was flat.

— LIFESTYLE — including Brita water-filtration products, Hidden Valley salad dressing and Burt’s Bees products:

Sales rose 10 percent.

Volume rose 12 percent.

— INTERNATIONAL — all countries outside the U.S.; excludes natural personal care products:

Sales rose 21 percent.

Volume rose 1 percent.

Source: Clorox Co.