Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Clorox (NYSE:CLX) Price Target to $145.00

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Free Report) had its price objective cut by Wells Fargo & Company from $155.00 to $145.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on CLX. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Clorox in a report on Thursday, January 30th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Clorox from $171.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Clorox from $139.00 to $134.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Clorox from $173.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Clorox from $145.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $153.83.

Clorox Trading Up 2.0 %

NYSE:CLX traded up $2.80 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $139.60. The company had a trading volume of 948,624 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,303,479. Clorox has a 1 year low of $127.60 and a 1 year high of $171.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.52. The company has a 50-day moving average of $146.57 and a 200 day moving average of $156.45. The company has a market cap of $17.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.61.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Clorox will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors 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 yield of 3.50%. Clorox's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Clorox

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Grimes & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in Clorox in the first quarter valued at $8,727,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Clorox by 10.0% during the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,492 shares of the company's stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Clorox by 22.2% during the 1st quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,422 shares of the company's stock worth $1,387,000 after buying an additional 1,714 shares during the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC increased its position in Clorox by 2.2% during the first quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 21,551 shares of the company's stock worth $3,173,000 after buying an additional 473 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in shares of Clorox by 5.7% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 115,552 shares of the company's stock worth $17,015,000 after acquiring an additional 6,277 shares during the last quarter. 78.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.