The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) have received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $155.38.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $153.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Clorox to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Clorox from $140.00 to $139.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th.

Clorox Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:CLX opened at $162.41 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $164.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $154.57. Clorox has a 1 year low of $127.60 and a 1 year high of $171.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.42.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.50. Clorox had a return on equity of 316.08% and a net margin of 4.78%. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Clorox will post 6.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 29th. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is currently 170.03%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Clorox

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CLX. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Clorox during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Clorox by 139.8% during the second quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Clorox by 300.0% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Clorox by 99.1% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Clorox during the third quarter worth about $48,000. 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.