Clorox (NYSE:CLX) Reaches New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Clorox shares hit a new 52-week low, trading as low as $84.65, while the stock remains below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment is largely negative: 13 analysts rate the stock Hold and four rate it Sell, contributing to a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $101.40.
• Clorox exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations but reported a 2% year-over-year revenue decline. The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25, producing a roughly 6% yield, though its payout ratio exceeds 100%.

Shares of The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $84.65 and last traded at $84.9730, with a volume of 254207 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $84.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on CLX. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Clorox from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $125.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $84.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Clorox from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Clorox in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Clorox from $102.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $101.40.

Clorox Stock Down 1.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $10.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.40, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.80, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $98.70 and a 200-day moving average of $99.54.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 8.74% and a return on equity of 522.23%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.87 earnings per share. Clorox has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.700-6.000 EPS. Research analysts predict that The Clorox Company will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th were issued a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 12th. This is an increase from Clorox's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.0%. Clorox's dividend payout ratio is 103.73%.

Institutional Trading of Clorox

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Clorox during the 2nd quarter valued at about $958,640,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Clorox by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,172,233 shares of the company's stock valued at $318,613,000 after acquiring an additional 10,060 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Clorox by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,136,405 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,244,000 after acquiring an additional 426,433 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Clorox during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $179,780,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Clorox by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,619,396 shares of the company's stock worth $163,284,000 after purchasing an additional 142,463 shares in the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Clorox

The Clorox Company NYSE: CLX is a consumer products company that develops, manufactures and markets household, health and wellness, and lifestyle products. Its portfolio includes cleaning and disinfecting products, laundry and home-care items, food products, personal-care products, water-filtration systems, charcoal, and cat litter.

Clorox's brands include Clorox bleach and disinfecting products, Pine-Sol, Fresh Step and Scoop Away, Kingsford, Brita, Burt's Bees, Hidden Valley, and products marketed under the Glad name.

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