Robert Half (NYSE:RHI) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $36.70, but opened at $38.77. Robert Half shares last traded at $40.2510, with a volume of 453,683 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RHI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Robert Half from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Robert Half from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Robert Half from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, William Blair raised shares of Robert Half from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $31.62.

Robert Half Stock Up 1.2%

The company has a market cap of $4.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.18 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.98.

Robert Half (NYSE:RHI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.14. Robert Half had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 10.14%. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.17 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Robert Half Inc. will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Robert Half Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. Robert Half’s dividend payout ratio is currently 181.54%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Robert Half by 19.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 38,352 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,092,000 after buying an additional 6,212 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Robert Half by 498.7% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 6,813 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $372,000 after acquiring an additional 5,675 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Robert Half by 2.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 304,359 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,603,000 after acquiring an additional 7,523 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Robert Half by 91.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 55,719 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,039,000 after acquiring an additional 26,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Robert Half by 94.6% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 8,098 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 3,937 shares during the last quarter. 92.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Robert Half Company Profile

Robert Half International Inc, founded in 1948 by Robert Half, is a global professional staffing and consulting firm headquartered in Menlo Park, California. As a pioneer in specialized staffing, the company has built a reputation for matching skilled professionals with leading organizations across a range of industries. Robert Half’s shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker RHI, reflecting its position as one of the longest‐standing and best‐known firms in the staffing sector.

The company offers a comprehensive suite of services, including temporary staffing, permanent placement, and consulting solutions.