March 21 (Reuters) - Bleach maker Clorox said on

Thursday that it would sell its operations in Argentina, Uruguay

and Paraguay to private equity fund Apex Capital, as it looks to

tighten its portfolio to be more profitable, and take a one-time

charge of about $233 million related to the sale.

The company, whose move comes at a time when higher prices

are hurting demand for consumer goods, said it will record the

after-tax charge in the third quarter of fiscal 2024, which

would shave off about $1.87 of its earnings per share in the

quarter.

The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Clorox Argentina was about 2% of the company's fiscal 2024

net sales forecast in February, and could reduce its annual net

sales growth target by about half a point, and adjusted earnings

per share by up to 2 cents, the company said.

The Pine-Sol maker's shares were down marginally in

early trade.

In February, Clorox had lifted its annual targets as it

posted a quick recovery from a cybersecurity incident that took

its products off the shelves for a short period in September

2023.

In December, consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble ( PG )

said it would restructure its Argentina and Nigeria operations

as it deals with difficult macroeconomic conditions in the

regions, along with a strong dollar.