StockNews.com Upgrades Rollins (NYSE:ROL) to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Rollins (NYSE:ROL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Friday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Rollins from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Rollins in a research report on Monday, November 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rollins has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.00.

Rollins Price Performance

Rollins stock opened at $46.68 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $22.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.63 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $48.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.21. Rollins has a 12-month low of $40.41 and a 12-month high of $52.16.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). Rollins had a net margin of 14.18% and a return on equity of 38.67%. The firm had revenue of $916.27 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $911.15 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Rollins will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a $0.165 dividend. This is an increase from Rollins’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. Rollins’s payout ratio is currently 68.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Timothy Curtis Rollins sold 14,750 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.88, for a total value of $735,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 124,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,195,794.32. This trade represents a 10.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 4,685 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.49, for a total value of $236,545.65. Following the sale, the insider now owns 84,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,274,129.97. This trade represents a 5.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rollins

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROL. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its holdings in Rollins by 10,233.3% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 930 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 921 shares in the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rollins by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 23,326 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Rollins during the 2nd quarter worth $393,000. iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rollins by 147.1% during the second quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,204 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,962,000 after purchasing an additional 23,933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in Rollins by 2.0% in the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 31,811 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,552,000 after buying an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.79% of the company’s stock.

About Rollins

Rollins, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides pest and wildlife control services to residential and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. The company offers pest control services to residential properties protecting from common pests, including rodents, insects, and wildlife.