Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stock Position in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,736,746 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 70,502 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 6.97% of Rollins worth $1,563,698,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ROL. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Rollins during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Rollins in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of Rollins by 4,272.2% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 787 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 769 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Rollins by 57.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 890 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Rollins during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.79% of the company's stock.

Rollins Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE ROL traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $54.07. 141,106 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,652,033. The company's 50 day moving average price is $51.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.59. Rollins, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.72 and a 12 month high of $54.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.17 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

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Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.23. Rollins had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 37.94%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ROL shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Rollins from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Rollins from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Rollins from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rollins presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Thomas D. Tesh sold 1,921 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.78, for a total value of $99,469.38. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 41,173 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,131,937.94. This represents a 4.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 13,193 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 76,526 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,916,600.68. This represents a 14.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,338 shares of company stock valued at $945,882 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 4.47% 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.