Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Buys 824,731 Shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 9,005.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 833,889 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 824,731 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.17% of Rollins worth $38,651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ROL. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Rollins by 17.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,557,923 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $395,819,000 after buying an additional 1,282,508 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Rollins by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,267,060 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $197,778,000 after purchasing an additional 617,876 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Rollins during the 4th quarter valued at about $176,784,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Rollins by 389.2% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,770,131 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $128,396,000 after purchasing an additional 2,203,859 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Rollins by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,280,005 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $115,323,000 after purchasing an additional 420,399 shares in the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Rollins

In related news, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 13,193 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.18, for a total transaction of $675,217.74. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,526 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,916,600.68. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Traci Hornfeck sold 3,224 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.10, for a total value of $171,194.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,602 shares in the company, valued at $509,866.20. The trade was a 25.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 20,259 shares of company stock worth $1,047,330. Insiders own 4.47% of the company's stock.

Rollins Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE ROL traded up $1.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $56.11. 1,643,192 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,982,362. 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 business's 50-day moving average is $52.72 and its 200-day moving average is $50.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.45 and a beta of 0.80. Rollins, Inc. has a twelve month low of $43.18 and a twelve month high of $56.31.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.22. The business had revenue of $822.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $817.09 million. Rollins had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 37.94%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Rollins's payout ratio is 68.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Rollins from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded Rollins from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays upped their price objective on Rollins from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Rollins from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Rollins from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rollins currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.50.

Rollins 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.