Wedmont Private Capital Boosts Stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Wedmont Private Capital boosted its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 7.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,517 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the quarter. Wedmont Private Capital’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $519,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in Republic Services by 23.5% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 12,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,448,000 after purchasing an additional 2,393 shares during the period. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the second quarter worth about $277,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the second quarter worth about $1,681,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in Republic Services by 23.3% during the second quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,576 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,278,000 after purchasing an additional 1,241 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Republic Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,705,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Republic Services

In other news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.02, for a total transaction of $1,065,011.42. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,318 shares in the company, valued at $1,326,906.36. This trade represents a 44.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total value of $400,186.93. Following the sale, the director now owns 879 shares in the company, valued at $189,222.33. This trade represents a 67.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE RSG opened at $209.66 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.66 billion, a PE ratio of 33.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.73. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $165.06 and a 12-month high of $220.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $209.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $204.20.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $4.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 12.46%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.54 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is currently 37.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on RSG. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Republic Services from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC increased their price target on Republic Services from $217.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Republic Services in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $224.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on Republic Services from $220.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Republic Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $221.12.

About Republic Services

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.