Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Increases Holdings in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL - Free Report) by 17.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 171,348 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 25,709 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Rollins were worth $7,498,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ROL. Markel Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Markel Corp now owns 1,248,275 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $43,752,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Rollins by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 228,203 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $7,999,000 after purchasing an additional 10,319 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Rollins by 19.1% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 17,031 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $597,000 after purchasing an additional 2,730 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rollins by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 49,502 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Rollins by 24.3% during the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 46,760 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,639,000 after purchasing an additional 9,129 shares during the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ROL shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Rollins in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $42.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group decreased their price target on Rollins from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Rollins in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut Rollins from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Kenneth D. Krause sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total value of $230,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 99,078 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,575,422.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Kenneth D. Krause sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total transaction of $230,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 99,078 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,575,422.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.05, for a total value of $410,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,709 shares in the company, valued at $4,093,054.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 22,824 shares of company stock valued at $994,558. Company insiders own 4.69% of the company's stock.

Rollins Stock Performance

Shares of ROL stock traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $45.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,420,116 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,910,979. The business's fifty day moving average is $44.52 and its 200-day moving average is $41.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market cap of $21.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.31, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.63. Rollins, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.19 and a 1-year high of $47.45.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The business services provider reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21. The business had revenue of $754.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $753.40 million. Rollins had a return on equity of 35.97% and a net margin of 14.15%. The company's revenue was up 14.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Rollins, Inc. will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 20th. Rollins's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.18%.

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.