Sciencast Management LP Boosts Stock Position in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Sciencast Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) by 102.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 63,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 32,135 shares during the quarter. Sciencast Management LP’s holdings in Rollins were worth $2,943,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Rollins during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $74,249,000. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. increased its position in Rollins by 14.0% in the third quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 9,397,497 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $465,503,000 after buying an additional 1,154,722 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Rollins in the third quarter valued at $28,980,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Rollins by 96.1% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,000,045 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $46,046,000 after buying an additional 490,183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Rollins by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,280,005 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $115,323,000 after acquiring an additional 420,399 shares during the period. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rollins Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROL opened at $51.62 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $50.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.77 and a beta of 0.78. Rollins, Inc. has a one year low of $41.72 and a one year high of $53.72.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23. Rollins had a return on equity of 37.94% and a net margin of 13.76%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Traci Hornfeck sold 3,224 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.10, for a total transaction of $171,194.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,602 shares in the company, valued at $509,866.20. This trade represents a 25.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 13,193 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.18, for a total value of $675,217.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,526 shares in the company, valued at $3,916,600.68. This trade represents a 14.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,338 shares of company stock valued at $945,882 over the last quarter. 4.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Rollins from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Rollins from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.00.

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.