Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) Short Interest Down 20.2% in July

Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,320,000 shares, a drop of 20.2% from the July 15th total of 6,670,000 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,600,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Rollins from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com raised Rollins from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Rollins in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Rollins in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Jerry Jr. Gahlhoff sold 12,000 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.20, for a total value of $566,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 288,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,625,271.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Kenneth D. Krause sold 3,331 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.50, for a total value of $158,222.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 90,747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,310,482.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jerry Jr. Gahlhoff sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.20, for a total value of $566,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 288,671 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,625,271.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,017 shares of company stock valued at $948,707. 4.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in Rollins by 72.4% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 619 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Rollins in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Rollins in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its stake in Rollins by 139.7% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 755 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in Rollins by 43.9% during the 2nd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 774 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rollins Stock Performance

NYSE:ROL traded down $0.87 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $48.18. 1,742,127 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,791,008. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Rollins has a 52 week low of $32.19 and a 52 week high of $50.87.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27. Rollins had a net margin of 14.23% and a return on equity of 40.10%. The firm had revenue of $891.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $895.02 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Rollins will post 1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.42%.

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.