Analysts Set Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) Target Price at $31.90

Rentokil Initial PLC (NYSE:RTO) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $31.90.

A number of research firms have issued reports on RTO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Rentokil Initial from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lowered shares of Rentokil Initial from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $26.70 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, July 31st.

Rentokil Initial Price Performance

NYSE:RTO opened at $24.36 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $28.50 and its 200 day moving average is $30.80. Rentokil Initial has a 12 month low of $23.26 and a 12 month 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.

Rentokil Initial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $0.224 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 192.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RTO. Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in Rentokil Initial by 292.0% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 117,341 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,687,000 after acquiring an additional 87,405 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning purchased a new position in shares of Rentokil Initial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $393,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Rentokil Initial by 2,549.7% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 93,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,236,000 after purchasing an additional 89,649 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Rentokil Initial by 40.0% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,582 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,309 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in Rentokil Initial by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 10,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $253,000 after buying an additional 1,736 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 9.91% of the company’s stock.

About Rentokil Initial

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.