Clorox (NYSE:CLX) Given New $130.00 Price Target at Barclays

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) had its price objective decreased by Barclays from $139.00 to $130.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an underweight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on CLX. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Clorox from $140.00 to $139.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Clorox from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Clorox from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $174.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Clorox from $153.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Clorox from $167.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Clorox presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $156.54.

Clorox Stock Performance

Shares of CLX stock traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $160.31. The stock had a trading volume of 937,465 shares, compared to its average volume of 960,748. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $164.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $156.38. Clorox has a fifty-two week low of $127.60 and a fifty-two week high of $171.37. The firm has a market cap of $19.84 billion, a PE ratio of 55.86, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Clorox had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 316.08%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Clorox will post 6.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 29th will be paid a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 29th. Clorox's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 170.04%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Clorox

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its position in shares of Clorox by 46,877.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,500,000 shares of the company's stock worth $733,095,000 after acquiring an additional 4,490,421 shares in the last quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP grew its stake in shares of Clorox by 512.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP now owns 542,110 shares of the company's stock worth $88,315,000 after acquiring an additional 453,624 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Clorox by 424.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 538,576 shares of the company's stock valued at $877,390,000 after buying an additional 435,971 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in shares of Clorox by 5,442.5% during the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 273,908 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,622,000 after acquiring an additional 268,966 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Clorox by 302.0% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 353,367 shares of the company's stock worth $57,390,000 after purchasing an additional 265,455 shares during the period. 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.