StockNews.com Lowers Rollins (NYSE:ROL) to Hold

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Rollins in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a report on Thursday, July 25th. 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 currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.83.

Rollins Price Performance

ROL traded up $0.23 on Tuesday, hitting $50.73. 1,014,649 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,736,785. Rollins has a fifty-two week low of $32.19 and a fifty-two week high of $51.96. The stock has a market cap of $24.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.00, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $49.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27. Rollins had a net margin of 14.23% and a return on equity of 40.10%. The firm had revenue of $891.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $895.02 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.23 earnings per share. Rollins’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Rollins will post 1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 4,686 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.82, for a total transaction of $224,084.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,543,999.86. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 4,686 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.82, for a total value of $224,084.52. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 95,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,543,999.86. The sale 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 Rollins stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.74, for a total transaction of $237,716.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 89,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,533,010.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rollins during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in Rollins in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in Rollins by 43.9% during the second quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 774 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rollins by 10,233.3% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 930 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 114.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,604 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.