UBS Group Upgrades Clorox (NYSE:CLX) to Neutral

UBS Group upgraded shares of Clorox (NYSE:CLX) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat reports. UBS Group currently has $132.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $124.00.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Clorox from $140.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Clorox from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their target price for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a report on Thursday, November 2nd. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Clorox from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $152.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, October 2nd. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Clorox from $160.00 to $120.00 and set an underperform rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 5th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Clorox from $127.00 to $116.00 in a report on Thursday, October 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Clorox has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $139.33.

Clorox Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE CLX opened at $128.98 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.38. Clorox has a 52 week low of $114.68 and a 52 week high of $178.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $134.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $150.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 189.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.35.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 1st. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.20) by $0.69. Clorox had a net margin of 1.22% and a return on equity of 165.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.93 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Clorox will post 4.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 25th will be given a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 24th. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is presently 705.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kevin B. Jacobsen sold 3,346 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.82, for a total value of $538,103.72. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,734,883.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Clorox

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Tyler Stone Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in Clorox by 105.6% during the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Clorox during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ten Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Clorox by 429.7% during the first quarter. Ten Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 196 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Capital Advisors Group LLC. acquired a new position in Clorox during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 77.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.