685,299 Shares in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) Purchased by M&G Plc

M&G Plc acquired a new position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 685,299 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $130,892,000. Republic Services accounts for about 0.8% of M&G Plc’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,758 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Patten Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 4,542 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Global Strategic Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,000. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, Director Katharine Weymouth acquired 540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $185.26 per share, with a total value of $100,040.40. Following the purchase, the director now owns 540 shares in the company, valued at $100,040.40. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Republic Services news, CMO Amanda Hodges sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.02, for a total transaction of $1,209,130.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 6,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,270,702.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth purchased 540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $185.26 per share, for a total transaction of $100,040.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 540 shares in the company, valued at $100,040.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on RSG. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $209.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Republic Services in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $203.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $192.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $204.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $203.64.

Republic Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RSG traded down $1.11 on Friday, reaching $203.46. 1,141,994 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,244,342. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $140.23 and a 1-year high of $206.54. The firm has a market cap of $64.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a 50-day moving average of $191.34 and a 200-day moving average of $184.72.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.89 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 11.81% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 2nd were paid a $0.535 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 2nd. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is 37.54%.

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.