Rentokil Initial (NYSE:RTO) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) shares gapped up before the market opened on Thursday. The stock had previously closed at $21.04, but opened at $22.39. Rentokil Initial shares last traded at $22.6090, with a volume of 471,471 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on RTO. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Rentokil Initial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Investec raised shares of Rentokil Initial to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.90.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.06. The business has a fifty day moving average of $22.00 and a 200-day moving average of $27.43.

Rentokil Initial Cuts Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of Rentokil Initial

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Continuum Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Rentokil Initial during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rentokil Initial by 84.5% during the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,395 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rentokil Initial in the second quarter worth about $57,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake 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 worth $66,000 after buying an additional 707 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp bought a new position in Rentokil Initial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $83,000. Institutional investors own 9.91% of the company’s stock.

About Rentokil Initial

Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO) is a business services company headquartered in the United Kingdom. It provides pest control, hygiene, and workplace services to commercial, public-sector, and residential customers. Its offerings are designed to help organizations manage pests, maintain sanitary environments, and support health, safety, and workplace standards.

The company’s pest control services address insects, rodents, and other pests, while its hygiene operations provide washroom services, sanitary products, air care, floor-care solutions, and related workplace services.