Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd Decreases Stock Holdings in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL)

Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd cut its stake in Rollins, Inc. (NYSE:ROL) by 26.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 61,747 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 21,973 shares during the period. Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd’s holdings in Rollins were worth $2,862,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Rollins by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 4,604 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rollins in the third quarter valued at $254,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Rollins by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 60,187 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,044,000 after buying an additional 3,713 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Rollins by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,167,949 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $109,655,000 after buying an additional 31,458 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in Rollins by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 13,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. 51.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Rollins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on Rollins from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group increased their target price on Rollins from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Rollins in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Rollins from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rollins

In other Rollins news, insider Thomas D. Tesh sold 1,921 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.78, for a total value of $99,469.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 41,173 shares in the company, valued at $2,131,937.94. This represents a 4.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Elizabeth B. Chandler sold 13,193 shares of Rollins stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.18, for a total transaction of $675,217.74. Following the sale, the insider now owns 76,526 shares in the company, valued at $3,916,600.68. This represents a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,338 shares of company stock valued at $945,882 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 4.69% of the company’s stock.

Rollins Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of ROL opened at $52.37 on Tuesday. Rollins, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $41.72 and a fifty-two week high of $53.72. The company’s fifty day moving average is $50.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.48. The firm has a market cap of $25.40 billion, a PE ratio of 54.55 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Rollins (NYSE:ROL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23. Rollins had a return on equity of 37.94% and a net margin of 13.76%. Analysts forecast that Rollins, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Rollins Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.26%. Rollins’s payout ratio is 68.75%.

Rollins 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.