Rollins (NYSE:ROL) Upgraded at StockNews.com

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

ROL has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Barclays assumed coverage on Rollins in a report on Monday, November 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Rollins from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rollins currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.00.

Rollins Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of ROL stock opened at $46.68 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.63 and a beta of 0.72. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $48.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.24. Rollins has a twelve month low of $40.41 and a twelve month high of $52.16.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $916.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $911.15 million. Rollins had a net margin of 14.18% and a return on equity of 38.67%. The company’s revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Rollins will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a dividend of $0.165 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. This is a positive change from Rollins’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. Rollins’s payout ratio is 68.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rollins

In related news, major shareholder Timothy Curtis Rollins sold 14,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.88, for a total value of $735,730.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 124,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,195,794.32. The trade was a 10.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 4,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, 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. 4.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Rollins

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Rollins in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Rollins during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in Rollins by 4,272.2% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 787 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position in shares of Rollins by 10,233.3% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 930 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 921 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Rollins in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.