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 mid-day 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 trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 4,799 ($60.99).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Ashtead Group Stock Down 3.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 146.30, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market capitalization of £25.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.46, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is GBX 5,054.71 and its 200-day moving average price is GBX 5,460.09.

Ashtead Group (LON:AHT) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ashtead Group plc will post 363.5658915 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashtead Group Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Ashtead Group

In related news, insider Brendan Horgan acquired 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 5,320 ($67.61) per share, for a total transaction of £212,800 ($270,428.26). Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

About Ashtead Group

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.