4,944 Shares in Republic Services, Inc. $RSG Acquired by Calamos Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Calamos Advisors LLC initiated a new position in Republic Services during the first quarter, buying 4,944 shares worth about $1.08 million.
• Republic Services reported solid quarterly results, with EPS of $1.70 beating estimates and revenue of $4.11 billion slightly topping expectations, while revenue rose 2.6% year over year.
• The stock has drawn mixed Wall Street sentiment, with analysts maintaining a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $243.89.

Calamos Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 4,944 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,083,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,695,747 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,054,820,000 after acquiring an additional 166,474 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 27.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,765,623 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,857,698,000 after purchasing an additional 1,899,183 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 38.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,348,501 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,133,509,000 after purchasing an additional 1,490,719 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,070,130 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,074,513,000 after purchasing an additional 807,525 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Republic Services in the 4th quarter worth about $617,165,000. Institutional investors own 57.73% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on RSG. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Republic Services from $240.00 to $223.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Republic Services from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Argus lowered shares of Republic Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $233.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Republic Services presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $243.89.

Republic Services Stock Up 3.2%

RSG stock opened at $224.26 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $210.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $214.64. The company has a market cap of $69.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.18, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.40. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.41 and a 12-month high of $246.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.10 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 18.57%. Republic Services's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Republic Services, Inc. will post 7.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.87%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sandra M. Volpe sold 1,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.28, for a total transaction of $380,304.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 58 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,254.24. This trade represents a 96.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. bought 60,700 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $213.31 per share, with a total value of $12,947,917.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 110,803,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,635,597,400.42. The trade was a 0.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 987,150 shares of company stock valued at $202,366,682. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Republic Services Profile

Republic Services, Inc is a leading provider of non-hazardous solid waste and recycling services in the United States. The company offers a broad range of waste management solutions to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers, positioning itself as a full-service partner for everyday waste collection as well as specialized disposal needs.

Republic's core operations include curbside and commercial collection, transfer and hauling, materials recovery and recycling facilities, and landfill disposal.

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