Rep. Rick W. Allen Buys Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) Shares

Representative Rick W. Allen (R-Georgia) recently bought shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL). In a filing disclosed on January 16th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $15,001 and $50,000 in Rollins stock on December 12th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “R.W. ALLEN & ASSOCIATES, INC. > RWA&A – SECURITIES” account.

Rollins Trading Up 0.2 %

ROL traded up $0.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $48.40. 1,986,853 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,451,933. Rollins, Inc. has a 1 year low of $40.41 and a 1 year high of $52.16. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $48.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.96. The firm has a market cap of $23.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.42 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). Rollins had a net margin of 14.18% and a return on equity of 38.67%. The company had revenue of $916.27 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $911.15 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.28 EPS. Rollins’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Rollins, Inc. will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rollins Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.165 dividend. This is a positive change from Rollins’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.75%.

Insider Activity at Rollins

In other news, major shareholder Timothy Curtis Rollins sold 14,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.88, for a total transaction of $735,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 124,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,195,794.32. This represents a 10.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Rollins in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on Rollins in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Rollins from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com cut Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rollins

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Rollins by 14.0% during the third quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 9,397,497 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $465,503,000 after buying an additional 1,154,722 shares in the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Rollins in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,225,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Rollins during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,980,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Rollins by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,280,005 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $115,323,000 after purchasing an additional 420,399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Rollins by 535.2% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 261,379 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,115,000 after purchasing an additional 220,230 shares in the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Representative Allen

Rick Allen (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Georgia’s 12th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2015. His current term ends on January 3, 2025. Allen (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Georgia’s 12th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2024 election. Allen won re-election in 2018 with more than 59 percent of the vote. Prior to his election to the U.S. House, Allen founded a small business which has, according to his office biography, “created thousands of jobs in the Augusta and Athens communities for more than 35 years.” He graduated from Auburn University with a degree in building construction. At the beginning of the 115th Congress, Allen was assigned to the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Education and the Workforce. Allen was born in Augusta, Georgia, in 1951. He attended Auburn University in Alabama, graduating in 1973 with a B.S. in building construction. After earning his degree, Allen worked as an estimator, project administrator and assistant to the president with a construction firm in Augusta. In 1976, he founded his own construction business, R. W. Allen & Associates, Inc. The company operates in six states across the country. In 2008, Allen was presented with the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business Person of the Year award.

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.