Republic Services, Inc. $RSG Shares Sold by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. reduced its holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 44,043 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,395 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $10,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 1.6% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,057,995 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,699,892,000 after purchasing an additional 296,719 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Republic Services by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,821,387 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,187,328,000 after buying an additional 144,003 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Republic Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $690,313,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 10.1% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,379,682 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $586,854,000 after acquiring an additional 218,114 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 21.3% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,325,302 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $573,443,000 after acquiring an additional 408,885 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, Director Katharine Weymouth purchased 478 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $209.46 per share, with a total value of $100,121.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,202,300.40. This represents a 9.08% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Republic Services from $260.00 to $233.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Republic Services from $260.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Republic Services in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $255.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Republic Services in a report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $248.00 price objective on shares of Republic Services and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.64.

Republic Services Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of RSG opened at $213.20 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $199.43 and a 1-year high of $258.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.54. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $213.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $227.95.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The business services provider reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.25 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 18.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.81 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be issued a $0.625 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.20%.

About Republic Services

Republic Services, Inc is a leading provider of non-hazardous solid waste and recycling services in the United States. The company offers a broad range of waste management solutions to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers, positioning itself as a full-service partner for everyday waste collection as well as specialized disposal needs.

Republic’s core operations include curbside and commercial collection, transfer and hauling, materials recovery and recycling facilities, and landfill disposal.