Rollins (NYSE:ROL) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $65.00 to $68.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Rollins traded as high as $62.12 and last traded at $61.96, with a volume of 86708 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $61.64.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on ROL. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Rollins in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley upgraded Rollins from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $58.00 to $72.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Rollins in a report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Rollins in a research note on Friday, September 26th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $66.00 target price on shares of Rollins and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rollins currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.33.

Insider Transactions at Rollins

In other news, insider Thomas D. Tesh sold 2,396 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.06, for a total value of $143,903.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 29,231 shares in the company, valued at $1,755,613.86. This trade represents a 7.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman John F. Wilson sold 1,520 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.40, for a total transaction of $90,288.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 607,587 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,090,667.80. The trade was a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 8,707 shares of company stock worth $515,664 over the last 90 days. 4.47% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about Rollins

Here are the key news stories impacting Rollins this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on ROL to $68 and moved to an “overweight” rating, signaling analyst conviction in further upside from current levels. Wells Fargo raises ROL price target to $68 (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: An American Banking News piece highlights Wells Fargo’s forecast for strong price appreciation in Rollins, reinforcing the message that analyst upgrades are a key positive catalyst. Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Rollins (AmericanBankingNews)
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reiterated a Buy rating with a $72 price target, providing another institutional endorsement that supports upside potential versus the current price. Morgan Stanley maintains Buy on ROL with $72 PT (TipRanks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are preparing for the upcoming quarterly report — previews and analyst expectations are circulating but contain no surprise catalyst yet; earnings execution will be the next clear short-term driver. Rollins’ Quarterly Earnings Preview (Yahoo Finance)
• Neutral Sentiment: Several media items reference people named “Rollins” (e.g., Brooke Rollins, WWE’s Seth Rollins, and athlete Ryan Rollins) that are unrelated to Rollins, Inc.; these are noise for investors and unlikely to affect the stock. Brooke Rollins claims meals can cost $3 (Yahoo) Seth Rollins Gives An Update On His WWE Status (MSN)
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha piece argues ROL is trading at a “toxic valuation” and issues a sell recommendation, which can pressure the stock by highlighting stretched multiples and convincing some investors to reduce exposure. Rollins: Stock Continues Rollin’ Higher, But At A Toxic Valuation – Sell (Seeking Alpha)
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a headwind: ROL’s trailing PE is elevated versus history and some peers, so even positive operational news may be muted if investors focus on near-term multiple contraction risk.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rollins

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ROL. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Rollins by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 4,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $294,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC increased its position in Rollins by 718.8% during the fourth quarter. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC now owns 32,244 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,935,000 after acquiring an additional 28,306 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in Rollins by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 62,436 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,747,000 after acquiring an additional 2,474 shares during the last quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG purchased a new stake in Rollins in the fourth quarter worth $647,000. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Rollins by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 110,363 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,624,000 after buying an additional 1,463 shares during the period. 51.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rollins Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $60.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.02. The stock has a market cap of $30.16 billion, a PE ratio of 58.11 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. Rollins had a return on equity of 37.60% and a net margin of 14.02%.Rollins’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were issued a $0.1825 dividend. This represents a $0.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. This is a positive change from Rollins’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.22%.

Rollins Company Profile

Rollins, Inc (NYSE: ROL) is a provider of pest and termite control services operating through a network of subsidiaries and franchises. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company offers a broad range of pest management solutions for both residential and commercial customers, positioning itself as a specialist in protecting property and public health from pests and vectors.

Its service offerings include general pest control, termite inspection and treatment, bed bug remediation, mosquito and vector control, wildlife exclusion, and related specialty services.