The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Receives $148.63 Average Target Price from Analysts

The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Reduce" from the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and twelve have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $148.63.

CLX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Clorox from $155.00 to $151.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Barclays cut their price objective on Clorox from $148.00 to $136.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Clorox from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $145.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $160.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on Clorox from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th.

Clorox Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE:CLX traded down $1.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $146.48. 1,191,766 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,000,632. Clorox has a twelve month low of $114.68 and a twelve month high of $178.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.37, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $149.39 and a 200 day moving average of $142.60. The stock has a market cap of $18.18 billion, a PE ratio of 232.51, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.43.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $1.08. Clorox had a return on equity of 319.41% and a net margin of 1.09%. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.98 EPS. The business's revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Clorox will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. Clorox's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 761.92%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Clorox

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CLX. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Clorox by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,586 shares of the company's stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Czech National Bank increased its position in Clorox by 47.9% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 21,647 shares of the company's stock worth $2,837,000 after buying an additional 7,013 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in Clorox by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 28,195 shares of the company's stock worth $3,695,000 after buying an additional 3,005 shares during the period. Apeiron RIA LLC increased its position in Clorox by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. Apeiron RIA LLC now owns 2,891 shares of the company's stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 286 shares during the period. Finally, First Personal Financial Services grew its holdings in shares of Clorox by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Personal Financial Services now owns 32,518 shares of the company's stock worth $4,262,000 after purchasing an additional 1,397 shares in the last quarter. 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.