WR Wealth Planners LLC Trims Stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

WR Wealth Planners LLC cut its holdings in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 903 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 113 shares during the period. WR Wealth Planners LLC’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $182,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in RSG. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Republic Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI boosted its holdings in Republic Services by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 132 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Republic Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Republic Services

In related news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total value of $1,436,062.60. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,376,931.20. This trade represents a 37.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total transaction of $400,186.93. Following the sale, the director now directly 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. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Price Performance

Shares of RSG opened at $237.42 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $215.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $209.74. The stock has a market cap of $74.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.74. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $180.91 and a 1 year high of $237.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.21. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 18.28%. The business had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. Republic Services’s payout ratio is presently 35.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on RSG shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.56.

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.