Clorox (NYSE:CLX) Price Target Cut to $151.00 by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) had its price target trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $173.00 to $151.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Clorox from $140.00 to $139.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Clorox from $161.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Clorox in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Clorox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $156.75.

Clorox Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:CLX opened at $141.35 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $157.24. Clorox has a one year low of $127.60 and a one year high of $171.37. The firm has a market cap of $17.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.16. Clorox had a net margin of 6.38% and a return on equity of 316.87%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Clorox will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be issued a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.45%. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 133.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Clorox

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Clorox by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 9,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,339,000 after acquiring an additional 1,171 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC boosted its position in Clorox by 4.7% during the first quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 28,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,234,000 after purchasing an additional 1,278 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC boosted its position in Clorox by 48.7% during the first quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares in the last quarter. Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in Clorox in the first quarter valued at approximately $83,000. Finally, Secure Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Clorox in the 1st quarter worth $254,000. 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.