Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Wall Street Analysts

Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fifteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.90.

RTO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Rentokil Initial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Rentokil Initial from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of Rentokil Initial from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $26.70 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Investec upgraded Rentokil Initial to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rentokil Initial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Continuum Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rentokil Initial during the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in Rentokil Initial by 84.5% in the first quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,395 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Rentokil Initial during the second quarter worth about $57,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Rentokil Initial by 296.3% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 1,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rentokil Initial by 50.5% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,107 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 9.91% of the company’s stock.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

RTO opened at $20.57 on Friday. Rentokil Initial has a fifty-two week low of $20.52 and a fifty-two week high of $34.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $24.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.93.

Rentokil Initial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.2240 per share. This is a decrease from Rentokil Initial’s previous dividend of $0.4120. This represents a yield of 188.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th.

Rentokil Initial Company Profile

Rentokil Initial plc is a United Kingdom-based business services company specializing in pest control, hygiene and workplace services. Through its pest control operations, the company provides inspection, prevention and treatment programs for residential, commercial and industrial customers, addressing insects, rodents, birds and other pests.

The company also supplies hygiene and washroom services, including sanitary products, restroom equipment, air-care systems and related maintenance programs.