Robert Half (NYSE:RHI) Trading Up 6% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Robert Half shares rose 6% on Monday, trading as high as $34.11 after closing at $32.40, though volume was well below average.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious overall: recent rating changes were mixed, but the stock’s consensus rating is still “Reduce” with an average price target of $31.75.
• The company’s latest quarterly results were roughly in line on earnings at $0.14 per share, but revenue came in below estimates and declined 3.8% year over year.

Shares of Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI - Get Free Report) were up 6% on Monday . The company traded as high as $34.11 and last traded at $34.3550. Approximately 412,609 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 2,867,154 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.40.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RHI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. William Blair upgraded Robert Half from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research lowered shares of Robert Half from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Robert Half from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $31.75.

Robert Half Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.68 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a fifty day moving average of $29.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.60.

Robert Half (NYSE:RHI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14. Robert Half had a return on equity of 10.14% and a net margin of 2.43%.The company had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. Robert Half's quarterly revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Robert Half Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Robert Half Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. Robert Half's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 181.54%.

Institutional Trading of Robert Half

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. grew its holdings in Robert Half by 40.8% during the 4th quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 2,440,961 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $66,297,000 after buying an additional 707,078 shares during the last quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Robert Half in the fourth quarter valued at $2,844,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in shares of Robert Half by 5,652.2% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 442,520 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $12,019,000 after acquiring an additional 434,827 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Robert Half by 389.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 248,295 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,744,000 after purchasing an additional 197,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Robert Half by 24.2% in the 4th quarter. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC now owns 163,173 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,432,000 after purchasing an additional 31,786 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.41% of the company's stock.

About Robert Half

Robert Half International Inc, founded in 1948 by Robert Half, is a global professional staffing and consulting firm headquartered in Menlo Park, California. As a pioneer in specialized staffing, the company has built a reputation for matching skilled professionals with leading organizations across a range of industries. Robert Half's shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker RHI, reflecting its position as one of the longest‐standing and best‐known firms in the staffing sector.

The company offers a comprehensive suite of services, including temporary staffing, permanent placement, and consulting solutions.

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