The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) have been given an average recommendation of “Reduce” by the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and twelve have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $143.19.

CLX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Clorox from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Argus upgraded Clorox to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Clorox in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $130.00 price target on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Clorox in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $122.00 price objective for the company.

Clorox Stock Up 0.4 %

CLX stock opened at $164.77 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $142.37 and a 200-day moving average of $142.82. Clorox has a fifty-two week low of $114.68 and a fifty-two week high of $165.71. The company has a market capitalization of $20.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.37, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.28. Clorox had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 281.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Clorox will post 6.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were given a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. This is a positive change from Clorox’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is 252.85%.

Institutional Trading of Clorox

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CLX. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 3,665.3% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 102,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,647,000 after purchasing an additional 99,990 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC increased its holdings in shares of Clorox by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock worth $819,000 after buying an additional 652 shares during the period. Mission Wealth Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Clorox by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 7,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,040,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Clorox during the 4th quarter valued at about $236,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Clorox by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 172,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,600,000 after acquiring an additional 6,510 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

Clorox Company Profile

The Clorox Company manufactures and markets consumer and professional products worldwide. It operates through four segments: Health and Wellness, Household, Lifestyle, and International. The Health and Wellness segment offers cleaning products, such as laundry additives and home care products primarily under the Clorox, Clorox2, Scentiva, Pine-Sol, Liquid-Plumr, Tilex, and Formula 409 brands; professional cleaning and disinfecting products under the CloroxPro and Clorox Healthcare brands; professional food service products under the Hidden Valley brand; and vitamins, minerals and supplement products under the RenewLife, Natural Vitality, NeoCell, and Rainbow Light brands in the United States.