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

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) had its price target dropped by equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $167.00 to $145.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 21.38% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on Clorox from $176.00 to $154.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Clorox from $151.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Clorox from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 target price on Clorox and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Clorox from $134.00 to $129.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $149.50.

Clorox Stock Performance

NYSE CLX opened at $119.46 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $132.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $145.95. Clorox has a 1-year low of $119.41 and a 1-year high of $171.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.07, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.72 billion, a PE ratio of 21.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.54.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last posted its quarterly 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 the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.71 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Clorox will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Clorox

In other news, Director Pierre R. Breber acquired 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $136.57 per share, with a total value of $546,280.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $546,280. This represents a ? increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Clorox

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CLX. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Clorox in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new stake in Clorox in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Clorox during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. 78.53% of the stock is currently 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.