Bank of Nova Scotia Invests $3.01 Million in Rollins, Inc. $ROL

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia acquired 72,021 Rollins shares worth approximately $3.01 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 51.79% of the company.
• Rollins reported quarterly revenue of $1.08 billion, up 7.9% year over year, but its $0.32 EPS missed analyst expectations of $0.34. The stock opened at $36.70, near its one-year low of $35.83.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.1825 per share, equivalent to an annualized $0.73 dividend and a 2.0% yield. Wall Street’s consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $48.71.

Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new stake in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 72,021 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,006,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Rollins by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,282,523 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,297,717,000 after buying an additional 1,562,241 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Rollins in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,204,334,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Rollins by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,850,361 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $771,279,000 after acquiring an additional 575,946 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rollins by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,163,847 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $608,256,000 after acquiring an additional 626,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Rollins by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,089,189 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $365,473,000 after purchasing an additional 461,869 shares in the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rollins Stock Performance

Shares of Rollins stock opened at $36.70 on Thursday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $40.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.65. The company has a market cap of $17.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.36, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.63. Rollins, Inc. has a one year low of $35.83 and a one year high of $66.14.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.02). Rollins had a net margin of 13.55% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.30 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.18 EPS for the current year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $0.1825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Rollins's payout ratio is presently 66.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on ROL shares. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Rollins from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Rollins in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $46.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $45.00 target price (down from $70.00) on shares of Rollins in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Rollins from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Rollins from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Rollins currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $48.71.

Rollins Profile

Rollins, Inc NYSE: ROL is a provider of pest and termite control services operating through a network of subsidiaries and franchises. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company offers a broad range of pest management solutions for both residential and commercial customers, positioning itself as a specialist in protecting property and public health from pests and vectors.

Its service offerings include general pest control, termite inspection and treatment, bed bug remediation, mosquito and vector control, wildlife exclusion, and related specialty services.

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