Republic Services, Inc. $RSG Stock: Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Grows Stake

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 19.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 12,465 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,992 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $2,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of RSG. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in Republic Services by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 8,672 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,820,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Republic Services during the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Lido Advisors LLC raised its position in Republic Services by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 8,890 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,866,000 after purchasing an additional 1,733 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the 3rd quarter worth $214,000. Finally, Csenge Advisory Group purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the 3rd quarter worth $235,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. purchased 409,500 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $221.49 per share, with a total value of $90,700,155.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 116,166,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,729,680,431.70. This trade represents a 0.35% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have acquired 5,240,588 shares of company stock valued at $1,161,649,826 over the last 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Republic Services Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Republic Services stock traded down $0.27 on Friday, reaching $252.73. The stock had a trading volume of 962,828 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,430,155. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $227.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.41 and a 1 year high of $255.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.96, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.32.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.01. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.56%. The firm had revenue of $4.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.90 EPS. Republic Services’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 4th will be issued a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 4th. Republic Services’s payout ratio is currently 37.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on RSG. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Republic Services from $232.00 to $219.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Republic Services from $259.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Republic Services in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $249.00 to $240.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $236.00 target price on shares of Republic Services in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $252.10.

Republic Services Company Profile

Republic Services, Inc. provides waste collection, recycling and environmental services to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers across the United States. Its services include collecting and transporting waste, operating transfer stations and landfills, and processing recyclable materials. The company also provides environmental solutions, including services for the management and disposal of hazardous and other specialized waste. Republic Services traces its origins to the 1990s and expanded its operations through the 2008 combination with Allied Waste Industries.