Rentokil Initial plc (NYSE:RTO) Short Interest Update

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

Rentokil Initial Price Performance

RTO traded down $0.20 on Friday, hitting $23.82. 646,045 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 625,850. Rentokil Initial has a 12 month low of $22.40 and a 12 month high of $34.07. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $25.43 and its 200-day moving average is $27.20.

Institutional Trading of Rentokil Initial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Rentokil Initial by 3.8% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 16,990,179 shares of the company’s stock worth $423,573,000 after acquiring an additional 617,227 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 1,041,860 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Rentokil Initial in the third quarter valued at approximately $44,055,000. Harvey Partners LLC raised its stake in Rentokil Initial by 48.3% in the third quarter. Harvey Partners LLC now owns 1,430,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,650,000 after buying an additional 465,500 shares during the period. Finally, MIG Capital LLC raised its stake in Rentokil Initial by 34.3% in the third quarter. MIG Capital LLC now owns 1,195,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,816,000 after buying an additional 305,374 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 9.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on RTO shares. Redburn Atlantic cut Rentokil Initial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Citigroup raised Rentokil Initial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.00.

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.