Consumer products maker Clorox Co. said it dismissed Deloitte & Touche LLP as its auditor after 46 years.
Clorox said in January that its board would dismiss the accounting firm because it did not completely separate its audit and consulting businesses in time — concerns stemming from recent legislation aimed at removing conflicts of interests auditors have when they audit a company's books.
Deloitte, part of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, was dismissed on Saturday, the Oakland, California-based company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Clorox, which filed a quarterly financial statement with the SEC on Wednesday, said it will replace Deloitte, which had been Clorox's auditor since 1957, with Ernst & Young.
In June, Deloitte Consulting said it would separate from the parent company by becoming a private firm instead of going public like many of its peers. A Clorox spokeswoman said the company decided it would seek a new auditor if that split was not completed by Dec. 31.
Clorox shares were down up 82 cents, or 2 percent, at $42.53 in midday trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
