The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX) Receives Consensus Rating of "Reduce" from Brokerages

The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" by the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $151.23.

A number of analysts have commented on CLX shares. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Clorox from $134.00 to $129.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Clorox from $176.00 to $154.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Clorox from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th.

Insider Activity

In other Clorox news, Director Pierre R. Breber acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $136.57 per share, for a total transaction of $546,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $546,280. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Clorox in the 4th quarter worth approximately $259,041,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in Clorox by 118.8% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,085,661 shares of the company's stock valued at $159,699,000 after acquiring an additional 589,544 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Clorox by 75.4% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,361,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,163,000 after acquiring an additional 585,526 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Clorox by 688.7% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 587,679 shares of the company's stock worth $86,535,000 after acquiring an additional 513,171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Clorox by 412.1% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 598,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $88,167,000 after purchasing an additional 481,846 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.53% of the company's stock.

Clorox Stock Performance

NYSE:CLX traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $130.12. The company had a trading volume of 74,277 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,338,552. The firm has a market cap of $16.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.53, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $137.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $150.63. Clorox has a 52 week low of $129.03 and a 52 week high of $171.37.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.74 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 6.38% and a return on equity of 316.87%. The firm's revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.71 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Clorox will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

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.