Rentokil Initial (NYSE:RTO) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $25.15, but opened at $23.05. Rentokil Initial shares last traded at $23.16, with a volume of 581,379 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on RTO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of Rentokil Initial in a report on Friday. Citigroup raised Rentokil Initial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rentokil Initial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Rentokil Initial Trading Down 5.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43, a PEG ratio of 7.95 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.79.

Rentokil Initial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.3825 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. Rentokil Initial's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.84%.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RTO. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Rentokil Initial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Assetmark Inc. bought a new position in Rentokil Initial during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. increased its position in Rentokil Initial by 65.2% in the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,505 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 594 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 30.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,737 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares during the period. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in Rentokil Initial by 15,208.3% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,837 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,825 shares during the last quarter. 9.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Rentokil Initial

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.