Comerica Bank Purchases 34,911 Shares of Rollins, Inc. $ROL

Key Points

• Comerica Bank increased its stake in Rollins, Inc. by 23.9%, acquiring an additional 34,911 shares, bringing its total holdings to 180,707 shares worth approximately $9.76 million.
• Analysts have a mixed outlook on Rollins, with a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating and price targets ranging from $59.00 to $72.00.
• Rollins announced a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, set to be paid on September 10th, reflecting a yield of 1.2% and a dCRP of 65.35%.

Comerica Bank lifted its stake in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 23.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 180,707 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 34,911 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in Rollins were worth $9,764,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in Rollins in the first quarter valued at $27,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Rollins by 961.4% in the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 605 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 548 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Rollins by 73.0% in the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 806 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its holdings in Rollins by 61.3% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,081 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service increased its holdings in Rollins by 75.0% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,078 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Rollins from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded Rollins from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Argus initiated coverage on Rollins in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Rollins from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Rollins from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $61.40.

Rollins Stock Up 0.5%

ROL stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Friday, reaching $56.54. 1,881,497 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,364,022. The firm's 50 day moving average is $56.87 and its 200 day moving average is $55.32. The firm has a market cap of $27.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.98 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Rollins, Inc. has a twelve month low of $45.34 and a twelve month high of $59.10.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $999.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $988.77 million. Rollins had a return on equity of 36.96% and a net margin of 13.70%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 EPS for the current year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.165 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Rollins's payout ratio is 65.35%.

Insider Transactions at Rollins

In other Rollins news, Chairman John F. Wilson sold 30,000 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $1,741,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 632,727 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,723,475.08. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company 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.