Wellington Management Group LLP Lowers Stock Holdings in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Wellington Management Group LLP reduced its position in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,529,953 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 124,179 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Rollins were worth $77,385,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Rollins in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rollins in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Rollins in the second quarter valued at $34,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Rollins by 4,272.2% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 787 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 769 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in Rollins by 10,233.3% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 930 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 921 shares in the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rollins Stock Performance

NYSE ROL opened at $49.13 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Rollins, Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.41 and a 52-week high of $52.16. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $49.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.15. The firm has a market cap of $23.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.18 and a beta of 0.72.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). Rollins had a return on equity of 38.67% and a net margin of 14.18%. The company had revenue of $916.27 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $911.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.28 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Rollins, Inc. will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. This is a positive change from Rollins’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Rollins’s payout ratio is currently 68.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rollins

In other news, major shareholder Timothy Curtis Rollins sold 14,750 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.88, for a total transaction of $735,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 124,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,195,794.32. This trade represents a 10.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 4,685 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.49, for a total transaction of $236,545.65. Following the sale, the insider now owns 84,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,274,129.97. The trade was a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on ROL. Barclays assumed coverage on Rollins in a research note on Monday, November 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Rollins from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.83.

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.