Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $52.00.

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 target price on shares of Rollins in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Rollins from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Rollins from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 13,193 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.18, for a total transaction of $675,217.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,526 shares in the company, valued at $3,916,600.68. This represents a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Traci Hornfeck sold 3,224 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.10, for a total transaction of $171,194.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $509,866.20. This represents a 25.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 18,338 shares of company stock worth $945,882. 4.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rollins

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Rollins during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Rollins during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Rollins during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new stake in Rollins during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rollins Stock Performance

Shares of ROL stock opened at $51.81 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $25.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.96 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.69. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.42. Rollins has a 52 week low of $41.72 and a 52 week high of $53.72.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.23. Rollins had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 37.94%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Rollins will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Rollins’s payout ratio is presently 68.75%.

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.