Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) Position Lessened by Natixis Advisors L.P.

Natixis Advisors L.P. reduced its stake in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 16.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 99,042 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 19,240 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P.’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $16,332,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Magellan Asset Management Ltd increased its position in Republic Services by 1,497,159.0% in the 3rd quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 913,328 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $130,158,000 after acquiring an additional 913,267 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 34.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,202,405 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $313,865,000 after purchasing an additional 563,761 shares in the last quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the 4th quarter worth about $77,417,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 50.9% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 900,653 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $128,352,000 after acquiring an additional 303,754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Republic Services by 1,383.0% during the third quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 241,098 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,359,000 after acquiring an additional 224,841 shares during the period. 57.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RSG has been the subject of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Republic Services from $173.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $198.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $209.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $202.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $180.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.00.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Shares of RSG stock opened at $186.71 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $188.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $172.57. The company has a market capitalization of $58.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $140.07 and a 1-year high of $196.76.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.10. Republic Services had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 11.81%. The company had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 2nd will be paid a $0.535 dividend. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.54%.

Insider Activity at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, CEO Ark Jon Vander sold 5,446 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.10, for a total value of $1,002,608.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 85,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,669,303.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Profile

Republic Services, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, offers environmental services in the United States and Canada. It is involved in the collection and processing of recyclable, solid waste, and industrial waste materials; transportation and disposal of non-hazardous and hazardous waste streams; and other environmental solutions.