Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $137.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target points to a potential upside of 9.30% from the company's previous close.
Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on CLX. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $135.00 target price (down from $140.00) on shares of Clorox in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price objective on Clorox and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Clorox from $167.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Clorox from $150.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Clorox from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $143.36.
Get Our Latest Report on Clorox
Clorox Stock Performance
CLX stock traded up $1.15 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $125.34. 1,327,474 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,636,667. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.15. Clorox has a twelve month low of $117.35 and a twelve month high of $171.37.
Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.63. Clorox had a return on equity of 377.86% and a net margin of 11.40%. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.94 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.82 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Clorox will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.
Insider Activity at Clorox
In other news, Director Pierre R. Breber acquired 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $136.57 per share, with a total value of $546,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 4,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $546,280. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Clorox
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Clorox by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 8,448 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,372,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Clorox by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,074 shares of the company's stock worth $662,000 after buying an additional 646 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in Clorox by 76.6% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 250,495 shares of the company's stock worth $40,683,000 after buying an additional 108,631 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Clorox by 39.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 188,627 shares of the company's stock worth $30,635,000 after buying an additional 53,402 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Clorox by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,098,302 shares of the company's stock worth $501,925,000 after buying an additional 69,969 shares during the period. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About Clorox
(
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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.
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