Rentokil Initial plc (LON:RTO) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• "Moderate Buy" consensus from seven analysts (5 buy, 1 hold, 1 sell) with an average 12‑month price target of GBX 461.43.
• Multiple brokers have recently raised ratings/targets — Citigroup to a GBX 575 buy, Jefferies to GBX 550 buy, and UBS upgraded to buy and lifted its target to GBX 540.
• Shares opened at GBX 495.30 (near a 52‑week high of GBX 507) with a market cap of £12.46bn and a P/E of 26.72, and insider Sally Johnson purchased 2,676 shares at GBX 483.

Rentokil Initial plc (LON:RTO - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is GBX 461.43.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus restated a "hold" rating and set a GBX 390 target price on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Rentokil Initial from GBX 550 to GBX 575 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upped 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. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from GBX 430 to GBX 540 in a research report on Thursday, March 12th.

Rentokil Initial Price Performance

Shares of LON:RTO opened at GBX 495.30 on Friday. 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 fifty day moving average price of GBX 472.11 and a 200 day moving average price of GBX 447.10. Rentokil Initial has a fifty-two week low of GBX 334.80 and a fifty-two week high of GBX 507. The firm has a market cap of £12.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a P/E/G 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 company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 483 per share, for a total transaction of £12,925.08. Corporate 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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