Robert Half (NYSE:RHI) Reaches New 12-Month Low - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Robert Half's stock price reached a new 52-week low of $33.12, closing at $33.27, with a trading volume of 674,707 shares.
• Despite the low stock price, several analysts upgraded their ratings, with Wall Street Zen moving the stock from "sell" to "hold", while Zacks lowered it to "strong sell".
• The company reported earnings of $0.41 per share last quarter, surpassing estimates, but revenue decreased 7% year-over-year to $1.37 billion.

Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $33.12 and last traded at $33.27, with a volume of 674707 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $34.39.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on RHI. Wall Street Zen upgraded Robert Half from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Robert Half from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Robert Half in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Robert Half from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, September 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $45.83.

Robert Half Trading Down 3.4%

The stock's 50-day moving average is $35.67 and its 200-day moving average is $41.95. The stock has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98 and a beta of 1.02.

Robert Half (NYSE:RHI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Robert Half Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current year.

Robert Half Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.1%. Robert Half's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 134.86%.

Institutional Trading of Robert Half

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RHI. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Robert Half by 190.5% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,201,209 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $254,560,000 after acquiring an additional 4,066,328 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Robert Half during the first quarter valued at $71,175,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its position in shares of Robert Half by 1,478.6% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,145,456 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,021,000 after purchasing an additional 1,072,895 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Robert Half in the 2nd quarter worth about $43,804,000. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Robert Half by 80.3% during the 2nd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,377,277 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $97,587,000 after buying an additional 1,058,569 shares during the period. 92.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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