Scientech Research LLC Takes $663,000 Position in Robert Half Inc. $RHI

Key Points

• Scientech Research LLC acquired a new stake of 12,149 shares in Robert Half Inc., valued at approximately $663,000, in the first quarter.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has reduced its price objective for Robert Half shares from $47.00 to $45.00, maintaining a "neutral" rating, while Wall Street Zen raised their rating from "sell" to "hold."
• Robert Half announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59, reflecting a dividend yield of 6.6%, with a payout ratio of 134.86%.

Scientech Research LLC bought a new position in Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 12,149 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $663,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Petrus Trust Company LTA acquired a new position in shares of Robert Half in the 1st quarter worth approximately $566,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in Robert Half by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,268,435 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $178,293,000 after buying an additional 50,436 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Robert Half by 27.2% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,134,881 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $115,348,000 after buying an additional 457,025 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in Robert Half by 24,118.3% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 58,366 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,974,000 after buying an additional 58,125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec lifted its holdings in Robert Half by 12.1% during the 1st quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 41,265 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,251,000 after buying an additional 4,450 shares in the last quarter. 92.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Robert Half from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Robert Half currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.83.

Robert Half Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of RHI traded down $0.90 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $35.49. The stock had a trading volume of 996,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,473,651. 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 moving average of $37.93 and a 200 day moving average of $44.19. The company has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.28 and a beta of 1.03.

Robert Half (NYSE:RHI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. Robert Half had a net margin of 3.20% and a return on equity of 13.00%. The business had revenue of $1.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Robert Half Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current 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 dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. Robert Half's dividend payout ratio is 134.86%.

Robert Half Company 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.