Dudley & Shanley Inc. Grows Position in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Dudley & Shanley Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 455,750 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,200 shares during the period. Rollins makes up about 3.3% of Dudley & Shanley Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position. Dudley & Shanley Inc. owned about 0.09% of Rollins worth $21,124,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Rollins by 11.1% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 58,017 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,831,000 after buying an additional 5,808 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Rollins by 7.0% in the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 131,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,402,000 after purchasing an additional 8,590 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Rollins by 11.1% in the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 43,573 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,126,000 after buying an additional 4,340 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Rollins by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 656,703 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,040,000 after buying an additional 29,769 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Rollins by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 7,985 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $390,000 after buying an additional 1,330 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.79% of the company’s stock.

Rollins Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of ROL traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $46.24. 389,260 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 709,185. The firm has a market cap of $22.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.17 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Rollins, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.41 and a 12-month high of $52.16.

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

Rollins Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a dividend of $0.165 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. This is an increase from Rollins’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Rollins’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROL has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Rollins from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Rollins from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays initiated coverage on Rollins in a research report on Monday, November 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Rollins from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Timothy Curtis Rollins sold 14,750 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 124,214 shares in the company, valued at $6,195,794.32. This trade 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 through this hyperlink. Insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

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.