Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Moderate Buy consensus from 12 analysts (2 sell, 3 hold, 6 buy, 1 strong buy) and an average 12‑month price target of $34.50.
• Company declared a dividend of $0.412 per share, payable May 19 to shareholders of record on April 10 (ex-dividend date April 10).
• Shares opened at $33.52 with a 12‑month range of $22.53–$34.67 and 50/200‑day moving averages of $32.11 and $30.27, respectively.

Shares of Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $34.50.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Rentokil Initial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group raised shares of Rentokil Initial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded Rentokil Initial from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Rentokil Initial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Rentokil Initial by 4.7% during the first quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,299 shares of the company's stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the period. Pullen Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Rentokil Initial by 0.7% in the third quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 48,758 shares of the company's stock worth $1,231,000 after acquiring an additional 359 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. raised its position in shares of Rentokil Initial by 2.0% in the third quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 21,228 shares of the company's stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 10,425 shares of the company's stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 531 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Rentokil Initial by 76.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 534 shares during the period. 9.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rentokil Initial Price Performance

Shares of RTO opened at $33.52 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $32.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.16. Rentokil Initial has a twelve month low of $22.53 and a twelve month high of $34.67.

Rentokil Initial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.412 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a yield of 245.0%.

Rentokil Initial Company Profile

Rentokil Initial PLC is a global business services company specializing in pest control, hygiene and workwear services. Headquartered in Crawley, West Sussex, United Kingdom, the company delivers outsourced solutions designed to protect people, preserve assets and enhance workplaces for both commercial and residential customers.

Under the Rentokil Pest Control brand, the company offers services ranging from routine inspections and treatment of insects, rodents and birds to specialised programmes for food manufacturing and healthcare environments.

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