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 report released on Wednesday.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Rollins in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. They set a buy rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a $49.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an outperform rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Rollins in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. They set an equal weight rating and a $42.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $46.83.

Rollins Stock Performance

Shares of Rollins stock opened at $43.01 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market cap of $20.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.63. The company’s fifty day moving average is $44.53 and its 200 day moving average is $41.82. Rollins has a twelve month low of $32.19 and a twelve month high of $47.45.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The business services provider reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21. The business had revenue of $754.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $753.40 million. Rollins had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 35.97%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.17 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Rollins will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.18%.

Insider Transactions at Rollins

In related news, insider Traci Hornfeck sold 2,677 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.48, for a total value of $116,395.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $625,068.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Traci Hornfeck sold 2,677 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.48, for a total value of $116,395.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $625,068.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Thomas D. Tesh sold 5,147 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $236,762.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 35,387 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,627,802. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,824 shares of company stock valued at $994,558 in the last 90 days. 4.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rollins

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Czech National Bank increased its stake in Rollins by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 49,396 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,286,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in Rollins by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 4,927 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Rollins by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 9,871 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $342,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its stake in Rollins by 72.4% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 619 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Rollins by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,150 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. 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.