Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO) Short Interest Down 22.1% in December

Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,960,000 shares, a decline of 22.1% from the December 15th total of 3,800,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 755,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days. Approximately 0.6% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RTO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup upgraded Rentokil Initial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Rentokil Initial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rentokil Initial

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Anthracite Investment Company Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 211.3% during the 3rd quarter. Anthracite Investment Company Inc. now owns 214,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,345,000 after purchasing an additional 145,528 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rentokil Initial by 165.8% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 55,604 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,386,000 after purchasing an additional 34,687 shares during the last quarter. Veracity Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rentokil Initial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $644,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in Rentokil Initial by 3.8% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 16,990,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,573,000 after purchasing an additional 617,227 shares during the last quarter. 9.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

RTO stock opened at $23.30 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market cap of $11.76 billion, a PE ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 7.23 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50 day moving average of $25.60 and a 200-day moving average of $27.28. Rentokil Initial has a 12-month low of $22.40 and a 12-month high of $34.07.

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.