Rentokil Initial (LON:RTO) Sets New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Price hit a 52-week high: Rentokil Initial traded as high as GBX 503.80 (last GBX 503.60) on Tuesday with ~14.8 million shares changing hands, up from a prior close of GBX 489.80.
• Analysts largely bullish but consensus target lags current price: Major brokers (Citigroup, UBS, Jefferies) raised ratings/targets (e.g., Citigroup TP GBX 575), with five Buys, one Hold and one Sell and a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" and target GBX 461.43.
• Key fundamentals and insider activity: Market cap £12.67bn, P/E 27.16, PEG 0.56 and high debt-to-equity (111.54); insider Sally Johnson bought 2,676 shares at GBX 483 and insiders own 2.82% of the stock.

Rentokil Initial plc (LON:RTO - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as GBX 503.80 and last traded at GBX 503.60, with a volume of 14811852 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at GBX 489.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RTO has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on Rentokil Initial from GBX 550 to GBX 575 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a "hold" rating and issued a GBX 390 price objective on shares of Rentokil Initial in a report on Thursday, March 5th. UBS Group upgraded Rentokil Initial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from GBX 430 to GBX 540 in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Rentokil Initial from GBX 540 to GBX 550 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of GBX 461.43.

Rentokil Initial Price Performance

The business's 50 day moving average is GBX 466.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 440.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 111.54, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of £12.67 billion, a PE ratio of 27.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rentokil Initial

In related news, insider Sally Johnson bought 2,676 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 483 per share, for a total transaction of £12,925.08. Company insiders own 2.82% of the company's stock.

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. The company provides hygiene services, including the provision and maintenance of products, such as soap and hand sanitizer dispensers, hand dryers, air care and purification, cubicle and surface sanitizers, feminine hygiene units, toilet paper dispensers, and floor protection mats.

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