Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 189,745 Shares of Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO)

Lazard Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO - Free Report) by 78.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,314 shares of the company's stock after selling 189,745 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Rentokil Initial were worth $1,323,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Rentokil Initial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $246,000. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in Rentokil Initial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $379,000. Gates Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Rentokil Initial by 21.0% in the 4th quarter. Gates Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,258,013 shares of the company's stock worth $158,453,000 after buying an additional 1,084,845 shares during the period. Fiduciary Trust Co increased its position in Rentokil Initial by 27.6% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 30,717 shares of the company's stock worth $778,000 after buying an additional 6,645 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Rentokil Initial by 277.4% during the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 32,661 shares of the company's stock worth $827,000 after purchasing an additional 24,006 shares in the last quarter. 9.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RTO traded up $0.51 during trading on Friday, hitting $23.85. 531,963 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 782,747. Rentokil Initial plc has a 1-year low of $19.60 and a 1-year high of $34.07. The company has a market capitalization of $12.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.95 and a beta of 0.96. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $22.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Rentokil Initial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were paid a $0.3825 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. Rentokil Initial's dividend payout ratio is 45.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on RTO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a report on Friday, March 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Rentokil Initial from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

About Rentokil Initial

Rentokil Initial plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides route-based services in North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and internationally. It offers a range of pest control services for rodents, and flying and crawling insects, as well as other forms of wildlife management for commercial customers.