Ashtead Group (LON:AHT) Hits New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Ashtead Group plc (LON:AHT) shares hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as GBX 4,379 ($56.61) and last traded at GBX 4,383.10 ($56.66), with a volume of 7641192 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 4,516 ($58.38).

Analyst Ratings Changes

AHT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 6,800 ($87.90) price target on shares of Ashtead Group in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Berenberg Bank reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 7,000 ($90.49) price target on shares of Ashtead Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Ashtead Group from GBX 6,600 ($85.32) to GBX 7,300 ($94.36) and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of GBX 6,550 ($84.67).

Ashtead Group Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of £23.89 billion, a PE ratio of 15.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 146.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of GBX 5,019.41 and a 200 day moving average price of GBX 5,441.36.

Ashtead Group (LON:AHT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported GBX 77.20 ($1.00) EPS for the quarter. Ashtead Group had a return on equity of 21.43% and a net margin of 14.08%. Research analysts anticipate that Ashtead Group plc will post 363.5658915 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashtead Group Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Ashtead Group

In other news, insider Brendan Horgan acquired 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 5,320 ($68.77) per share, with a total value of £212,800 ($275,077.56). Company insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

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.