NFJ Investment Group LLC Sells 2,085 Shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

NFJ Investment Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 239,258 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,085 shares during the period. NFJ Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Rollins were worth $11,090,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ROL. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rollins by 54.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 173,943 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,725,000 after purchasing an additional 61,475 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Rollins by 22.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,280,005 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $115,323,000 after buying an additional 420,399 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Rollins by 136.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 265,945 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,327,000 after buying an additional 153,437 shares during the last quarter. True North Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Rollins during the fourth quarter valued at about $262,000. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in shares of Rollins in the fourth quarter worth about $1,054,000. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Rollins

In related news, insider Thomas D. Tesh sold 1,921 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.78, for a total value of $99,469.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 41,173 shares in the company, valued at $2,131,937.94. This trade represents a 4.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Traci Hornfeck sold 3,224 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.10, for a total transaction of $171,194.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,602 shares in the company, valued at $509,866.20. The trade was a 25.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,259 shares of company stock worth $1,047,330 over the last ninety days. 4.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ROL shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Rollins from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Rollins from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Rollins from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rollins currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.83.

Rollins Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Rollins stock opened at $55.39 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $49.88. Rollins, Inc. has a 12-month low of $41.72 and a 12-month high of $57.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market cap of $26.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.69 and a beta of 0.80.

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

Rollins Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. Rollins’s payout ratio is presently 68.75%.

Rollins 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.