Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Buys 1,992 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 19.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,465 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,992 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $2,616,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its position in Republic Services by 2.5% in the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 1,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Republic Services by 3.3% during the third quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 1,455 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC lifted its position in Republic Services by 5.9% during the first quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 903 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Republic Services by 47.3% during the first quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 162 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Burford Brothers Inc. grew its stake in shares of Republic Services by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. now owns 1,944 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $414,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RSG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Argus upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $275.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Republic Services from $220.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Republic Services from $242.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Republic Services from $272.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Republic Services from $259.00 to $281.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Republic Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $252.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. acquired 409,500 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $221.49 per share, with a total value of $90,700,155.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 116,166,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,729,680,431.70. This trade represents a 0.35% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 5,240,588 shares of company stock worth $1,161,649,826. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE RSG traded down $0.27 on Friday, hitting $252.73. 962,828 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,430,155. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $227.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $218.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.96, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.32. Republic Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.41 and a 52-week high of $255.39.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.01. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 18.56%. The business had revenue of $4.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 7.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, January 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 4th. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.07%.

Republic Services Company Profile

Republic Services, Inc. provides waste collection, recycling and environmental services to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers across the United States. Its services include collecting and transporting waste, operating transfer stations and landfills, and processing recyclable materials. The company also provides environmental solutions, including services for the management and disposal of hazardous and other specialized waste. Republic Services traces its origins to the 1990s and expanded its operations through the 2008 combination with Allied Waste Industries.