Westpac Banking Corp Cuts Position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Westpac Banking Corp reduced its holdings in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 11.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,324 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 3,232 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $5,095,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in RSG. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Republic Services by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 17,682 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,586,000 after purchasing an additional 4,827 shares in the last quarter. TCW Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Republic Services by 13.0% in the third quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 114,582 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,013,000 after buying an additional 13,138 shares in the last quarter. DnB Asset Management AS raised its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 65.1% during the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 72,931 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $14,672,000 after buying an additional 28,764 shares during the period. Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new position in Republic Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,430,000. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its position in Republic Services by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 44,134 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,879,000 after acquiring an additional 2,548 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RSG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets raised Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (up from $244.00) on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, February 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.88.

Republic Services Trading Up 0.4 %

Republic Services stock opened at $244.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.58. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $180.92 and a 1 year high of $245.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $229.51 and its 200-day moving average is $214.60. The company has a market cap of $76.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.70, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.73.

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

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is currently 35.75%.

Insider Activity

In other Republic Services news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total transaction of $1,436,062.60. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 10,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,376,931.20. The trade was a 37.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services 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.