Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 3.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 399,398 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 13,697 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.08% of Rollins worth $20,202,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Rollins by 4.7% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,547 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC grew its position in Rollins by 4.9% during the third quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC now owns 4,543 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $230,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its position 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 buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its position in Rollins by 8.8% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 3,027 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $153,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in Rollins by 16.4% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,766 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.79% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rollins

In other Rollins news, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 4,685 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.49, for a total value of $236,545.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 84,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,274,129.97. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 4.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Rollins Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE ROL traded down $1.16 on Thursday, reaching $50.13. 922,384 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,705,183. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $49.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.63. Rollins, Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.95 and a 12 month high of $52.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $24.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.78 and a beta of 0.70.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $911.15 million. Rollins had a net margin of 14.18% and a return on equity of 38.67%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.28 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Rollins, Inc. will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.165 dividend. This is an increase from Rollins's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. Rollins's payout ratio is currently 68.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays assumed coverage on Rollins in a report on Monday, November 4th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Rollins from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Rollins from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $52.00 target price on shares of Rollins in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rollins has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $49.83.

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.