Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 9,998 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 183,474 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 9,998 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $38,884,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,107,360 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,384,757,000 after purchasing an additional 49,365 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Republic Services by 27.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,765,623 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,857,698,000 after buying an additional 1,899,183 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Republic Services by 15.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,098,273 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $711,003,000 after buying an additional 409,142 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Republic Services during the fourth quarter worth $617,165,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Republic Services by 6.0% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,031,005 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $466,075,000 after acquiring an additional 114,291 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RSG opened at $209.93 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $209.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $214.67. Republic Services, Inc. has a one year low of $196.41 and a one year high of $253.38. The firm has a market cap of $64.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.41.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.06. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.57% and a net margin of 13.00%.The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be issued a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. acquired 366,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $202.24 per share, with a total value of $74,019,840.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 110,315,982 shares in the company, valued at $22,310,304,199.68. This represents a 0.33% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders acquired 987,150 shares of company stock valued at $202,366,682. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on RSG. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Republic Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $249.00 price target on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $251.00 to $248.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Republic Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.26.

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.