Rollins (NYSE:ROL) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Rollins (NYSE:ROL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on shares of Rollins in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Barclays began coverage on shares of Rollins in a research note on Monday, November 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Rollins from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Rollins from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.50.

Rollins Stock Up 3.8 %

Shares of Rollins stock opened at $51.99 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $25.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.16 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.78. Rollins has a one year low of $40.41 and a one year high of $52.84. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $48.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.96.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23. Rollins had a net margin of 14.18% and a return on equity of 38.67%. On average, analysts forecast that Rollins will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be paid a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. Rollins’s payout ratio is 68.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rollins

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its stake in Rollins by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 9,397,497 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $465,503,000 after acquiring an additional 1,154,722 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Rollins by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,557,923 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $395,819,000 after acquiring an additional 1,282,508 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Rollins by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,267,060 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $197,778,000 after purchasing an additional 617,876 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Rollins during the 4th quarter worth about $176,784,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in shares of Rollins by 389.2% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,770,131 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $128,396,000 after purchasing an additional 2,203,859 shares during the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.