Clorox (NYSE:CLX) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $169.21 and last traded at $169.10, with a volume of 954172 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $167.64.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on CLX. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Clorox from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $155.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. DA Davidson increased their price target on Clorox from $153.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Clorox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $174.00 to $187.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. BNP Paribas upgraded Clorox to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Clorox from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $155.00.

Clorox Stock Up 0.9 %

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.08, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $20.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.41, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.41.

Clorox (NYSE:CLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.50. Clorox had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 316.08%. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that The Clorox Company will post 6.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clorox Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were paid a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. Clorox’s dividend payout ratio is 170.03%.

Insider Transactions at Clorox

In other news, EVP Angela C. Hilt sold 1,733 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $286,846.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,471 shares in the company, valued at $2,229,719.92. This trade represents a 11.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Clorox in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Clorox by 300.0% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Clorox in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Clorox by 139.8% during the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 223 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of Clorox by 99.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. 78.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.