Alliancebernstein L.P. Purchases 50,436 Shares of Robert Half Inc. $RHI

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in Robert Half Inc. by 1.6%, acquiring an additional 50,436 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 3.20% valued at $178.3 million.
• Robert Half recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, with an annualized yield of 6.3%, although its dividend payout ratio is high at 134.86%.
• Analysts rate Robert Half's stock as a "Hold" with a consensus price target of $45.83, following a mixed evaluation from recent reports.

Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI - Free Report) by 1.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,268,435 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 50,436 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 3.20% of Robert Half worth $178,293,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Robert Half by 5.4% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,618,177 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $197,372,000 after purchasing an additional 184,592 shares during the period. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI grew its stake in Robert Half by 14.4% in the first quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 2,576,782 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $140,563,000 after purchasing an additional 325,241 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Robert Half by 27.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,134,881 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $115,348,000 after purchasing an additional 457,025 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Robert Half by 29.2% in the first quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 1,318,708 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $71,936,000 after acquiring an additional 298,368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Robert Half in the first quarter worth $71,175,000. 92.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Robert Half Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RHI traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $35.91. 1,186,693 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,712,334. The company has a market cap of $3.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52 and a beta of 1.03. Robert Half Inc. has a one year low of $33.18 and a one year high of $78.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $38.50 and a 200 day moving average of $44.86.

Robert Half (NYSE:RHI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.35 billion. Robert Half had a return on equity of 13.00% and a net margin of 3.20%.The company's quarterly revenue was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.66 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Robert Half Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Robert Half Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.6%. Robert Half's dividend payout ratio is currently 134.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on RHI. Wall Street Zen raised Robert Half from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Robert Half from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.83.

Robert Half Profile

Robert Half Inc provides talent solutions and business consulting services in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The company operates through Contract Talent Solutions, Permanent Placement Talent Solutions, and Protiviti segments. The Contract Talent Solutions segment provides contract engagement professionals in the fields of finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, legal and administrative, and customer support.