Rentokil Initial (NYSE:RTO) Raised to Strong-Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Rentokil Initial has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Jefferies Financial Group, highlighting increasing investor confidence in the stock.
• The average rating for Rentokil Initial among analysts is "Moderate Buy," with a mix of ratings from strong buy to sell reflecting differing analyst opinions.
• Institutional investors have actively increased their stakes in Rentokil Initial, indicating a growing interest from large financial entities in the company's prospects.

Rentokil Initial (NYSE:RTO - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on RTO. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Rentokil Initial to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a report on Monday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Rentokil Initial from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Rentokil Initial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

RTO opened at $26.96 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $24.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.86. Rentokil Initial has a 52 week low of $19.60 and a 52 week high of $27.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.62 billion, a PE ratio of 17.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.95.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rentokil Initial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RTO. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 41.3% during the 3rd quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 23,532 shares of the company's stock worth $594,000 after buying an additional 6,883 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 38.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 8,886 shares of the company's stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 2,490 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 120.3% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 54,501 shares of the company's stock worth $1,308,000 after buying an additional 29,762 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 669.3% during the 2nd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 15,509 shares of the company's stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 13,493 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 93,129.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 293,673 shares of the company's stock worth $7,048,000 after buying an additional 293,358 shares during the last quarter. 9.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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