Wells Fargo & Company Increases Rollins (NYSE:ROL) Price Target to $58.00

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) had its price objective increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $56.00 to $58.00 in a research note released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the business services provider’s stock.

ROL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Rollins from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Rollins in a report on Monday, November 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.00.

Rollins Stock Performance

NYSE ROL opened at $48.56 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $49.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.22. The firm has a market cap of $23.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.40 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Rollins has a 1 year low of $40.41 and a 1 year high of $52.16.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last announced its 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). The firm had revenue of $916.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $911.15 million. Rollins had a net margin of 14.18% and a return on equity of 38.67%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Rollins will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were paid a $0.165 dividend. This is an increase from Rollins’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.36%. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.75%.

Insider Transactions at Rollins

In other news, major shareholder Timothy Curtis Rollins sold 14,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 4,685 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.49, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rollins

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Rollins by 1.5% during the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 10,023,281 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $489,036,000 after purchasing an additional 148,316 shares during the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 9,397,497 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $465,503,000 after acquiring an additional 1,154,722 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,275,415 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $366,821,000 after acquiring an additional 157,619 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,825,569 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $137,860,000 after acquiring an additional 133,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,167,949 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $109,655,000 after acquiring an additional 31,458 shares during the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rollins Company Profile

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.