Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts assign Rentokil Initial a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating: Seven analysts rate it a buy, one a strong buy, four a hold and two a sell. The average 12-month price target is $31.90.
• Recent research has been mixed, with Goldman Sachs upgrading the stock to “buy,” while Wall Street Zen, Zacks Research, BNP Paribas Exane and Weiss Ratings issued downgrades or maintained cautious ratings.
• RTO shares opened at $23.53, near their 52-week low of $23.22, while the company declared a $0.224 dividend payable September 22. Institutional investors own approximately 9.91% of the stock.

Shares of Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.90.

RTO has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Zacks Research lowered Rentokil Initial from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded Rentokil Initial from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $26.70 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Rentokil Initial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Rentokil Initial from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

Shares of RTO stock opened at $23.53 on Monday. Rentokil Initial has a fifty-two week low of $23.22 and a fifty-two week high of $34.67. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Rentokil Initial Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $0.224 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a yield of 188.0%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rentokil Initial

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of RTO. Continuum Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rentokil Initial in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Rentokil Initial by 10.8% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 9,965 shares of the company's stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 970 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in Rentokil Initial by 50.5% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Rentokil Initial by 1,098.7% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 9,062 shares of the company's stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 8,306 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Rentokil Initial by 60.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,650,998 shares of the company's stock worth $209,373,000 after buying an additional 2,511,135 shares during the last quarter. 9.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rentokil Initial Company Profile

Rentokil Initial PLC is a global business services company specializing in pest control, hygiene and workwear services. Headquartered in Crawley, West Sussex, United Kingdom, the company delivers outsourced solutions designed to protect people, preserve assets and enhance workplaces for both commercial and residential customers.

Under the Rentokil Pest Control brand, the company offers services ranging from routine inspections and treatment of insects, rodents and birds to specialised programmes for food manufacturing and healthcare environments.

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