Gabelli Funds LLC Lowers Stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Gabelli Funds LLC trimmed its holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 1.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 680,421 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 9,662 shares during the period. Republic Services accounts for approximately 1.0% of Gabelli Funds LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Gabelli Funds LLC owned about 0.22% of Republic Services worth $132,233,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RSG. Unigestion Holding SA raised its position in Republic Services by 2,178.2% in the fourth quarter. Unigestion Holding SA now owns 127,647 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $21,048,000 after acquiring an additional 122,044 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in Republic Services by 52.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 214,504 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,357,000 after buying an additional 73,651 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Republic Services by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 456,726 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $75,297,000 after buying an additional 36,484 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Republic Services by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 591,209 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $97,496,000 after buying an additional 55,668 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Republic Services by 123.5% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 38,869 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,410,000 after acquiring an additional 21,481 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In related news, Director Tomago Collins sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.01, for a total transaction of $649,632.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,549,832.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of RSG stock opened at $201.39 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $202.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $193.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $140.23 and a 1-year high of $208.69. The firm has a market cap of $63.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.33, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.70.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.11% and a return on equity of 17.81%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 2nd. This is a positive change from Republic Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RSG. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Republic Services from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Raymond James dropped their price target on Republic Services from $219.00 to $214.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $211.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Republic Services from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $211.00.

Republic Services Company Profile

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.