Rollins (NYSE:ROL) Shares Up 4.2% – What’s Next?

Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)’s stock price rose 4.2% during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $32.13 and last traded at $32.1790. Approximately 3,173,821 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 4,398,021 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ROL. Argus cut Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research lowered Rollins from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $43.00 price target (down from $50.00) on shares of Rollins in a research report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price target (down from $70.00) on shares of Rollins in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $45.00 price target on Rollins and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rollins has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.94.

Rollins Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $34.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The company has a market capitalization of $15.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.73.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.02). Rollins had a net margin of 13.55% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.30 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.16 EPS for the current year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.1825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio is 66.36%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rollins

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROL. Raiffeisen Bank International AG increased its position in Rollins by 73.5% during the 2nd quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 642 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Bayban acquired a new stake in Rollins in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Westpac Banking Corp bought a new stake in shares of Rollins during the second quarter worth $42,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rollins during the second quarter worth $88,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Rollins by 38.7% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,166 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 604 shares in the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rollins Company Profile

Rollins, Inc is a global provider of pest and wildlife control services. The company serves residential and commercial customers with solutions for common pests, including insects, rodents, termites, bedbugs and mosquitoes. Its services also include wildlife management, sanitation and related specialty treatments.

Rollins operates through a portfolio of well-known brands, including Orkin, Terminix, HomeTeam Pest Defense and Critter Control. These brands provide recurring pest prevention, inspections, extermination, termite control and other property protection services to homeowners, businesses and institutions.

Founded in 1948 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Rollins has expanded its operations across the United States and into international markets.