Jefferies Financial Group Cuts Clorox (NYSE:CLX) Price Target to $145.00

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) had its target price decreased by Jefferies Financial Group from $167.00 to $145.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on CLX. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Clorox from $176.00 to $154.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Clorox from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Clorox from $134.00 to $129.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Citigroup cut 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Clorox has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $149.50.

Clorox Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of CLX opened at $118.03 on Thursday. Clorox has a fifty-two week low of $117.35 and a fifty-two week high of $171.37. The company has a market capitalization of $14.55 billion, a PE ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $131.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $145.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.07, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by ($0.12). Clorox had a net margin of 9.89% and a return on equity of 324.23%. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.71 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Clorox will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Clorox

In other news, Director Pierre R. Breber bought 4,000 shares of Clorox stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $136.57 per share, with a total value of $546,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $546,280. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Clorox

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CLX. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Clorox in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in Clorox in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Clorox during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Clorox during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Clorox in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 78.53% 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.