Citigroup Boosts Clorox (NYSE:CLX) Price Target to $170.00

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) had its price target increased by Citigroup from $165.00 to $170.00 in a research report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on CLX. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. DA Davidson reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a $153.00 price target on shares of Clorox in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Clorox from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Clorox from $150.00 to $148.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Clorox from $122.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $143.50.

Clorox Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:CLX opened at $165.20 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $20.46 billion, a PE ratio of 85.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04. Clorox has a 12-month low of $114.68 and a 12-month high of $166.49. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $143.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.87.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Clorox had a return on equity of 281.12% and a net margin of 3.95%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Clorox will post 6.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were issued a $1.22 dividend. This is an increase from Clorox’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is 252.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Clorox

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CLX. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Clorox in the 2nd quarter valued at $283,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Clorox in the second quarter worth about $2,964,000. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL raised its position in shares of Clorox by 3.8% in the second quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL now owns 8,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares during the period. SPC Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Clorox by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 3,485 shares of the company’s stock worth $476,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wallace Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Clorox by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Wallace Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,822,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.