Ethic Inc. Purchases 1,654 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Ethic Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 12.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,471 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,654 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $2,911,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Republic Services by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 675,163 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $135,598,000 after acquiring an additional 66,842 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,537 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Graypoint LLC grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,525 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $307,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its position in Republic Services by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 44,134 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,879,000 after purchasing an additional 2,548 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 41,547 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,358,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE RSG opened at $248.56 on Monday. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $180.92 and a 12 month high of $253.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $240.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $222.83. The stock has a market cap of $77.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.66.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.05. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 12.74%. The business had revenue of $4.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.45 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be issued a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is 34.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on RSG shares. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Republic Services from $240.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Republic Services from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Republic Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Republic Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total transaction of $1,436,062.60. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 10,416 shares in the company, valued at $2,376,931.20. This trade represents a 37.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.11% 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.