California Public Employees Retirement System Raises Stock Position in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,495,794 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 24,236 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Rollins were worth $65,321,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in shares of Rollins by 14.9% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 118,662 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,430,000 after acquiring an additional 15,393 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rollins during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,617,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Rollins by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 171,348 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,498,000 after buying an additional 25,709 shares during the period. Crown Oak Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Rollins during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,547,000. Finally, Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in Rollins during the third quarter valued at approximately $98,000. 51.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rollins Trading Up 3.3 %

NYSE:ROL opened at $44.28 on Friday. Rollins, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.19 and a 12 month high of $47.45. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market capitalization of $21.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.75, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.63.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.20. Rollins had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 37.47%. The business had revenue of $748.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.12 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.18 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rollins, Inc. will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.42%.

Insider Activity at Rollins

In related news, CFO Kenneth D. Krause sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total transaction of $230,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 99,078 shares in the company, valued at $4,575,422.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Thomas D. Tesh sold 5,147 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $236,762.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 35,387 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,627,802. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kenneth D. Krause sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total transaction of $230,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 99,078 shares in the company, valued at $4,575,422.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 22,824 shares of company stock worth $994,558 over the last three months. Company insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ROL shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Rollins in a report on Thursday, February 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. 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 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $49.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a report on Monday, April 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.