Parnassus Investments LLC Sells 13,222 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Parnassus Investments LLC decreased its stake in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 339,211 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 13,222 shares during the quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $77,842,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of RSG. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Republic Services by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,057,995 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,699,892,000 after buying an additional 296,719 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 144,003 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Republic Services during the second quarter worth approximately $690,313,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 10.1% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,379,682 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $586,854,000 after buying an additional 218,114 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Republic Services by 21.3% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,325,302 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $573,443,000 after acquiring an additional 408,885 shares during the period. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Katharine Weymouth bought 478 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $209.46 per share, for a total transaction of $100,121.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 5,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,202,300.40. This represents a 9.08% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Republic Services Trading Up 0.1%

RSG opened at $212.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Republic Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.42 and a fifty-two week high of $258.75. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $212.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $225.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.57, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.55.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The business services provider reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.25 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 18.24%. Republic Services’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on RSG shares. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Republic Services from $280.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Republic Services from $260.00 to $233.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Barclays began coverage on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, September 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Republic Services from $257.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $250.41.

Republic Services Profile

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.