Patton Fund Management Inc. Acquires 31,486 Shares of Rollins, Inc. $ROL

Key Points

• Patton Fund Management boosted its stake in Rollins (NYSE: ROL) by 56.6%, buying 31,486 shares to hold 87,074 shares valued at about $5.23 million at quarter-end.
• Rollins missed Q4 estimates, reporting $0.25 EPS vs. $0.27 expected and $912.9M revenue vs. $925.1M expected, though revenue rose 9.7% year‑over‑year.
• Insiders sold 67,039 shares (~$4.18M) in the past 90 days while institutional ownership is 51.79%; analysts have a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average price target of $64.86 and the stock trades at a P/E of ~50.14.

Patton Fund Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 56.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 87,074 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 31,486 shares during the quarter. Patton Fund Management Inc.'s holdings in Rollins were worth $5,226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in Rollins during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Rollins during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new stake in Rollins during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Rollins during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in Rollins during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 51.79% of the company's stock.

Rollins Price Performance

Shares of ROL stock opened at $54.66 on Tuesday. Rollins, Inc. has a twelve month low of $51.77 and a twelve month high of $66.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.27 by ($0.02). Rollins had a return on equity of 38.16% and a net margin of 14.00%.The firm had revenue of $912.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $925.08 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.22 earnings per share. Rollins's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were paid a dividend of $0.1825 per share. This represents a $0.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. Rollins's dividend payout ratio is 66.97%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman John F. Wilson sold 5,344 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.83, for a total transaction of $335,763.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 594,705 shares in the company, valued at $37,365,315.15. This represents a 0.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Gary W. Rollins sold 10,355 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.83, for a total value of $650,604.65. Following the sale, the chairman owned 5,312,114 shares of the company's stock, valued at $333,760,122.62. This trade represents a 0.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 67,039 shares of company stock worth $4,177,480 over the last ninety days. 5.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on ROL. Wells Fargo & Company set a $56.00 price objective on Rollins and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Bank of America began coverage on Rollins in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $67.00 price objective on Rollins and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Loop Capital began coverage on Rollins in a research report on Monday. They issued a "hold" rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $70.00 price objective on Rollins in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.86.

Rollins Company 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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