Ashtead Group plc (LON:AHT) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Ashtead Group plc (LON:AHT - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the six analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is GBX 6,387.50 ($84.76).

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Ashtead Group to a "sector perform" rating and lowered their price target for the company from GBX 6,750 ($89.57) to GBX 4,125 ($54.74) in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Berenberg Bank restated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 7,000 ($92.89) price objective on shares of Ashtead Group in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd.

Insider Activity

In other Ashtead Group news, insider Renata Ribeiro bought 150 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 3,932 ($52.18) per share, with a total value of £5,898 ($7,826.43). 0.64% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ashtead Group Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of AHT traded up GBX 48 ($0.64) during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting GBX 4,079 ($54.13). The stock had a trading volume of 1,120,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,397,079. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 146.30, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of £22.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of GBX 4,185.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 5,050.25. Ashtead Group has a twelve month low of GBX 3,477 ($46.14) and a twelve month high of GBX 6,448 ($85.56).

Ashtead Group (LON:AHT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported GBX 77.20 ($1.02) earnings per share for the quarter. Ashtead Group had a return on equity of 21.43% and a net margin of 14.08%. On average, analysts anticipate that Ashtead Group will post 363.5658915 EPS for the current year.

Ashtead Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 9th. Ashtead Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.47%.

Ashtead Group Company Profile

Ashtead Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the construction, industrial, and general equipment rental business in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. It provides pumps, power generation, heating, cooling, scaffolding, traffic management, temporary flooring, trench shoring, and lifting services.