Values First Advisors Inc. Invests $202,000 in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 4,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $202,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ROL. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rollins during the second quarter worth about $29,000. KB Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Rollins in the first quarter worth about $32,000. Fred Alger Management LLC purchased a new stake in Rollins in the third quarter worth about $41,000. Operose Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Rollins in the third quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC purchased a new stake in Rollins in the second quarter worth about $47,000. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rollins Price Performance

Shares of ROL traded down $0.44 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $46.26. 1,365,334 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,962,550. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $44.24 and a 200-day moving average of $41.06. Rollins, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.19 and a 52 week high of $47.45. The stock has a market cap of $22.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.57, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.71.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The business services provider reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.21. Rollins had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 35.97%. The firm had revenue of $754.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $753.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.17 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Rollins, Inc. will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.05, for a total transaction of $410,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,709 shares in the company, valued at $4,093,054.45. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Rollins news, CFO Kenneth D. Krause sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total value of $230,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 99,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,575,422.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.05, for a total transaction of $410,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,093,054.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,824 shares of company stock worth $994,558 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Rollins in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $42.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Rollins in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 target price on shares of Rollins in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Rollins from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Rollins currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.83.

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.