The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) have received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the seventeen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $143.33.

CLX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BNP Paribas upgraded Clorox to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $153.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Clorox in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $122.00 price target for the company. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Clorox to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th.

Clorox Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE CLX opened at $164.84 on Tuesday. Clorox has a 1 year low of $114.68 and a 1 year high of $169.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.47 billion, a PE ratio of 85.41, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The business’s 50-day moving average is $149.75 and its 200 day moving average is $143.76.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 281.12% and a net margin of 3.95%. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Clorox will post 6.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. Clorox’s payout ratio is currently 252.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of Clorox stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $286,846.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,471 shares in the company, valued at $2,229,719.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Clorox

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Clorox by 1,525.7% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 65,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,046,000 after buying an additional 61,576 shares during the period. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Clorox by 93.7% in the 1st quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 72,053 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,032,000 after purchasing an additional 34,864 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its holdings in Clorox by 15.2% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 141,622 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,705,000 after purchasing an additional 18,687 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Clorox by 257.5% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,719,000 after purchasing an additional 8,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Clorox during the first quarter valued at about $1,025,000. Institutional investors own 78.53% of the company’s stock.

About Clorox

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.