Ashtead Group plc (LON:AHT) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Shares of Ashtead Group plc (LON:AHT - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is GBX 6,387.50 ($85.82).

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Berenberg Bank reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 7,000 ($94.05) price objective on shares of Ashtead Group in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Ashtead Group to a "sector perform" rating and lowered their price target for the company from GBX 6,750 ($90.69) to GBX 4,125 ($55.42) in a report on Tuesday.

Ashtead Group Stock Performance

Shares of Ashtead Group stock traded down GBX 97 ($1.30) during trading on Tuesday, hitting GBX 3,993 ($53.65). 759,467 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,557,982. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 146.30. The company has a fifty day moving average price of GBX 4,250.92 and a 200-day moving average price of GBX 5,102.24. The stock has a market capitalization of £21.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.22. Ashtead Group has a 1-year low of GBX 3,477 ($46.72) and a 1-year high of GBX 6,448 ($86.63).

Ashtead Group (LON:AHT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported GBX 77.20 ($1.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Ashtead Group had a return on equity of 21.43% and a net margin of 14.08%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ashtead Group will post 363.5658915 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashtead Group Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ashtead Group news, insider Renata Ribeiro acquired 150 shares of Ashtead Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of GBX 3,932 ($52.83) per share, for a total transaction of £5,898 ($7,924.22). 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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