Rollins (NYSE:ROL) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $54.41 and last traded at $54.32, with a volume of 1867128 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $54.03.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Rollins from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group lifted their target price 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. StockNews.com lowered Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $52.00 target price on shares of Rollins in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.00.

Rollins Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $26.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.58 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.62.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.23. Rollins had a return on equity of 37.94% and a net margin of 13.76%. Analysts predict that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rollins

In related news, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 13,193 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.18, for a total value of $675,217.74. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,526 shares in the company, valued at $3,916,600.68. The trade was a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Thomas D. Tesh sold 1,921 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.78, for a total value of $99,469.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 41,173 shares in the company, valued at $2,131,937.94. This represents a 4.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 18,338 shares of company stock valued at $945,882. 4.47% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rollins

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ROL. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in Rollins in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rollins during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Rollins in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Rollins by 57.8% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 890 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. Finally, Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in Rollins in the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. 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.