Ashtead Group (OTCMKTS:ASHTY) Lifted to Strong-Buy at Barclays

Barclays upgraded shares of Ashtead Group (OTCMKTS:ASHTY) to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Zacks.com reports.

Ashtead Group Trading Down 3.4 %

OTCMKTS:ASHTY opened at $270.52 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.57 billion, a PE ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.63. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $279.74 and its 200 day moving average is $280.47. Ashtead Group has a 12 month low of $221.86 and a 12 month high of $316.06.

Ashtead Group (OTCMKTS:ASHTY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 18th. The company reported $3.15 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.17 by ($0.02). Ashtead Group had a return on equity of 25.53% and a net margin of 15.61%. The company had revenue of $2.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.35 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Ashtead Group will post 15.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashtead Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be issued a dividend of $3.52 per share. This is a boost from Ashtead Group’s previous dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. Ashtead Group’s payout ratio is presently 7.89%.

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.