Bloomberg is reporting that Clorox could benefit from the H1N1 swine flu pandemic. The company sells bleach and wipes used by homeowners and offices to kill the virus.
The world's largest maker of bleach sold at retail has secured additional suppliers and will increase production if needed, said Benno Dorer, 45, the senior vice president- general manager of Clorox's cleaning division. Some retailers have already asked for more bleach, he said in a Sept. 4 telephone interview, declining to name specific companies.
An outbreak of the flu may add 2 percent or more to Clorox's per-share earnings for the duration of the outbreak, said Ali Dibadj, a New York-based analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. That benefit isn’t reflected in Clorox’s shares or analysts' projections, he said.
"Sales of bleach and wipes, which are about a quarter of Clorox's profit, could grow in the high single digits or more," Dibadj said in an e-mail. "It depends on how severe the outbreak might be, but the fear of an outbreak is enough."
Coincidentally, Clorox has posted a list of three of its products that the EPA says will kill the H1N1 swine flu virus. They include Clorox Regular-Bleach, Clorox Clean-Up Cleaner with Bleach spray cleaner and Clorox Disinfecting Wipes.
Bloomberg is 
