Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $29.00.

Several brokerages have recently commented on RTO. UBS Group upgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Rentokil Initial from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Rentokil Initial in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays raised Rentokil Initial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RTO opened at $31.71 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.71. Rentokil Initial has a 1-year low of $23.39 and a 1-year high of $38.43.

Rentokil Initial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a $0.2034 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rentokil Initial

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Rentokil Initial in the 2nd quarter worth about $40,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Rentokil Initial by 403.3% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 38.1% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 45,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,362,000 after purchasing an additional 12,683 shares in the last quarter. Annandale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rentokil Initial in the second quarter valued at approximately $537,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Rentokil Initial by 130.7% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,839,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041,860 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.91% of the company’s stock.

Rentokil Initial Company Profile

Rentokil Initial plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides route-based services in North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and internationally. It offers a range of pest control services for rodents, and flying and crawling insects, as well as other forms of wildlife management for commercial customers.