Rollins Increases Sales but Misses Estimates on Earnings

Rollins (NYS: ROL) reported earnings on Jan. 23. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Rollins beat slightly on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew and GAAP earnings per share grew.

Gross margins shrank, operating margins shrank, net margins were steady.

Revenue details
Rollins booked revenue of $306.4 million. The three analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected a top line of $302.5 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 6.0% higher than the prior-year quarter's $289.1 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.16. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.17 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.16 for Q4 were 6.7% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.15 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 46.8%, 90 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 11.7%, 40 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 7.5%, about the same as the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $299.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.17.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.33 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.84.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 92 members out of 98 rating the stock outperform, and six members rating it underperform. Among 30 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 29 give Rollins a green thumbs-up, and one give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Rollins is outperform, with an average price target of $28.00.

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The article Rollins Increases Sales but Misses Estimates on Earnings originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. TMFDisclosureHere

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