AQR Capital Management LLC Acquires 457,025 Shares of Robert Half Inc. $RHI

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Robert Half Inc. by 27.2%, owning approximately 2.09% of the company, worth about $115 million.
• Robert Half recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.41, beating analyst expectations, despite a 7.0% decline in revenue compared to the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share with a yield of 6.3%, reflecting a high dividend payout ratio of 134.86%.

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI - Free Report) by 27.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,134,881 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 457,025 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 2.09% of Robert Half worth $115,348,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Robert Half in the 1st quarter valued at $3,195,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Robert Half by 92.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,091 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 1,007 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC grew its stake in Robert Half by 43.8% in the 1st quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 327,901 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $17,887,000 after purchasing an additional 99,868 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Robert Half by 119.4% in the 1st quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 46,851 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,556,000 after purchasing an additional 25,498 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Robert Half by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 76,378 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,166,000 after purchasing an additional 3,248 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.41% of the company's stock.

Robert Half Stock Performance

NYSE RHI traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $35.91. The company had a trading volume of 1,186,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,712,334. Robert Half Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.18 and a 52 week high of $78.41. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52 and a beta of 1.03.

Robert Half (NYSE:RHI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. Robert Half had a return on equity of 13.00% and a net margin of 3.20%.The business had revenue of $1.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Robert Half Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Robert Half Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

About Robert Half

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.