Robert Half (NYSE:RHI) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $69.15, but opened at $64.86. Robert Half shares last traded at $64.18, with a volume of 620,751 shares traded.

The business services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.01). Robert Half had a return on equity of 18.78% and a net margin of 4.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on RHI shares. BNP Paribas downgraded Robert Half from an “outperform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Truist Financial upgraded Robert Half from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $62.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Robert Half from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Barclays upgraded Robert Half from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $60.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Robert Half presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Dirk A. Kempthorne sold 1,032 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.35, for a total value of $76,729.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $915,248.50. This represents a 7.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Robert Half

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RHI. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in shares of Robert Half during the 2nd quarter valued at about $677,000. Truist Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Robert Half by 1.3% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 28,271 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,809,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Robert Half by 2.4% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 66,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,242,000 after acquiring an additional 1,571 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its position in shares of Robert Half by 182.1% during the second quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 24,305 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,555,000 after acquiring an additional 15,690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Robert Half during the second quarter valued at approximately $350,000. Institutional investors own 92.41% of the company’s stock.

Robert Half Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $6.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.62 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.92.

About Robert Half

Robert Half Inc provides talent solutions and business consulting services in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The company operates through Contract Talent Solutions, Permanent Placement Talent Solutions, and Protiviti segments. The Contract Talent Solutions segment provides contract engagement professionals in the fields of finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, legal and administrative, and customer support.