Korea Investment CORP Sells 43,879 Shares of Rollins, Inc. $ROL

Key Points

• Korea Investment CORP has reduced its stake in Rollins, Inc. by 34.6%, selling 43,879 shares, leaving them with 82,817 shares valued at $4.475 million.
• Research analysts have set new price targets for Rollins, with Barclays raising theirs to $60.00 and Jefferies Financial Group increasing it to $65.00, reflecting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $61.40.
• Rollins recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, yielding approximately 1.1%, with a payout ratio of 65.35%.

Korea Investment CORP cut its holdings in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 34.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 82,817 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 43,879 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP's holdings in Rollins were worth $4,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Rollins by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,736,543 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,876,815,000 after acquiring an additional 999,797 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Rollins by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,046,844 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $141,221,000 after acquiring an additional 322,610 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Rollins by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,617,940 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $141,424,000 after buying an additional 98,607 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Rollins by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,301,146 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $124,331,000 after buying an additional 49,871 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Rollins by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,860,798 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $86,248,000 after buying an additional 279,855 shares during the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on ROL shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Rollins from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Barclays increased their price objective on Rollins from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. 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 research report on Monday, June 2nd. Argus started coverage on Rollins in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $68.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 price objective (up from $63.00) on shares of Rollins in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Rollins currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman John F. Wilson sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chairman owned 632,727 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $36,723,475.08. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 4.47% of the company's stock.

Rollins Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of ROL stock traded up $0.24 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $56.71. The company had a trading volume of 1,542,905 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,847,840. The company has a 50 day moving average of $56.85 and a 200 day moving average of $55.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market cap of $27.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.15 and a beta of 0.69. Rollins, Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.34 and a 1-year high of $59.10.

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

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. Rollins's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.35%.

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.