Forsta AP Fonden Sells 5,300 Shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Key Points

• Forsta AP Fonden reduced its stake in Rollins, Inc. by 9.5%, selling 5,300 shares and now holding 50,600 shares valued at approximately $2,734,000.
• Several hedge funds, including Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG and Bank of Nova Scotia, have increased their holdings in Rollins, indicating a strong interest from institutional investors.
• Rollins recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, with an annual yield of 1.1%, to be paid on September 10th for stockholders of record on August 11th.

Forsta AP Fonden cut its stake in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 9.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 50,600 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 5,300 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in Rollins were worth $2,734,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ROL. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its position in Rollins by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 66,050 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,061,000 after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 37,641 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,745,000 after acquiring an additional 1,229 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rollins in the 4th quarter worth approximately $206,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 126,340 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,856,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 97,241 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,507,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227 shares during the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ROL. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Rollins from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Rollins from $52.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Rollins from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Rollins from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Rollins from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rollins has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.40.

Rollins Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Rollins stock opened at $58.44 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $56.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.60. The company has a market cap of $28.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.86 and a beta of 0.69. Rollins, Inc. has a 12-month low of $45.34 and a 12-month high of $59.10.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $999.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $988.77 million. Rollins had a net margin of 13.70% and a return on equity of 36.96%. The company's revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.27 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 EPS for the current year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Rollins's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rollins

In other news, Chairman John F. Wilson sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total value of $1,741,200.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 632,727 shares of the company's stock, valued at $36,723,475.08. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 4.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Rollins Company 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.

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