Ashtead Group (LON:AHT) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Ashtead Group plc (LON:AHT) shares hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as GBX 4,583 ($58.24) and last traded at GBX 4,587 ($58.29), with a volume of 5005411 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at GBX 4,799 ($60.99).

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AHT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Ashtead Group from GBX 6,600 ($83.87) to GBX 7,300 ($92.77) and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Berenberg Bank reissued a “buy” rating and set a GBX 7,000 ($88.96) target price on shares of Ashtead Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 6,800 ($86.42) target price on shares of Ashtead Group in a research report on Monday, December 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of GBX 6,550 ($83.24).

Ashtead Group Trading Down 3.6 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is GBX 5,054.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 5,460.09. The stock has a market cap of £25.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 146.30, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.31.

Ashtead Group (LON:AHT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported GBX 77.20 ($0.98) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Ashtead Group had a return on equity of 21.43% and a net margin of 14.08%. Research analysts expect that Ashtead Group plc will post 363.5658915 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashtead Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.45%. Ashtead Group’s dividend payout ratio is 28.47%.

Insider Activity at Ashtead Group

In other Ashtead Group news, insider Brendan Horgan acquired 4,000 shares of Ashtead Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 5,320 ($67.61) per share, with a total value of £212,800 ($270,428.26). 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ashtead Group Company Profile

Ashtead Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the construction, industrial, and general equipment rental business in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. It provides pumps, power generation, heating, cooling, scaffolding, traffic management, temporary flooring, trench shoring, and lifting services.