Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. Cuts Stake in Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 0.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 341,919 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,616 shares during the quarter. Republic Services makes up about 4.3% of Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $74,887,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Republic Services by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,695,747 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,054,820,000 after purchasing an additional 166,474 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 27.7% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,899,183 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,348,501 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,133,509,000 after purchasing an additional 1,490,719 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Republic Services by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,070,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,074,513,000 after buying an additional 807,525 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Republic Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $617,165,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE RSG opened at $209.19 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $207.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $214.07. Republic Services, Inc. has a one year low of $196.41 and a one year high of $251.17. The company has a market capitalization of $64.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67.

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

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sandra M. Volpe sold 1,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.28, for a total transaction of $380,304.00. Following the sale, the director owned 58 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,254.24. This trade represents a 96.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. bought 366,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $202.24 per share, for a total transaction of $74,019,840.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 110,315,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,310,304,199.68. The trade was a 0.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought a total of 987,150 shares of company stock worth $202,366,682 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on RSG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Republic Services from $233.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Republic Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Republic Services from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Republic Services in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Republic Services from $253.00 to $247.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Eleven investment 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.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.