Rentokil Initial (NYSE:RTO) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $32.50, but opened at $30.69. Rentokil Initial shares last traded at $30.8840, with a volume of 504,144 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on RTO shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Bank of America raised shares of Rentokil Initial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $34.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Rentokil Initial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.00.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $30.76 and its 200-day moving average is $27.58.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Rentokil Initial by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 301,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,887,000 after acquiring an additional 44,158 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rentokil Initial during the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. Snyder Capital Management L P grew its holdings in shares of Rentokil Initial by 16.5% during the fourth quarter. Snyder Capital Management L P now owns 1,733,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,067,000 after purchasing an additional 244,976 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 58.8% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 76,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,239,000 after buying an additional 28,150 shares during the period. Finally, Sepio Capital LP bought a new position in Rentokil Initial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $217,000. 9.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.