Aviva PLC Cuts Stake in Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI)

Aviva PLC lessened its holdings in shares of Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI) by 17.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,760 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Robert Half were worth $578,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in RHI. Boston Partners raised its stake in Robert Half by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 8,554,276 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $602,867,000 after buying an additional 1,271,237 shares during the last quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Robert Half by 72.6% during the fourth quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 8,079,597 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $569,288,000 after acquiring an additional 3,398,257 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Robert Half by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,433,585 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $241,930,000 after purchasing an additional 148,577 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Robert Half by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,217,999 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $226,740,000 after purchasing an additional 17,338 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Robert Half by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,109,561 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $148,677,000 after purchasing an additional 53,294 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.41% of the company’s stock.

Robert Half Stock Down 5.8 %

Shares of RHI opened at $48.51 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88 and a beta of 1.13. Robert Half Inc. has a 52 week low of $44.97 and a 52 week high of $78.41. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $55.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $65.30.

Robert Half (NYSE:RHI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.01). Robert Half had a return on equity of 17.20% and a net margin of 4.34%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Robert Half Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Robert Half Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.59 dividend. This is a boost from Robert Half’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.86%. Robert Half’s payout ratio is presently 96.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on RHI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Robert Half from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays reduced their target price on Robert Half from $80.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. BNP Paribas upgraded Robert Half from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $71.50 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Robert Half from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded Robert Half from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $62.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.92.

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.