Merit Financial Group LLC Takes $546,000 Position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 2,712 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $546,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in RSG. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Republic Services by 27.1% during the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,743 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $533,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in Republic Services by 130.0% in the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 5,761 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,120,000 after purchasing an additional 3,256 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Republic Services by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,999 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Republic Services in the second quarter worth $4,625,000. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in shares of Republic Services by 60.1% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 42,226 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,206,000 after buying an additional 15,848 shares in the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on RSG. Scotiabank started coverage on Republic Services in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $224.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $220.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.24.

Insider Activity at Republic Services

In other news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were 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 owns 6,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,326,906.36. The trade was a 44.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total value of $400,186.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $189,222.33. This represents a 67.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Republic Services Stock Performance

NYSE:RSG opened at $212.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.64. Republic Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $168.58 and a fifty-two week high of $220.58. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $209.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $204.93. The firm has a market cap of $66.47 billion, a PE ratio of 33.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.73.

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

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.