California Public Employees Retirement System Decreases Stock Holdings in Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Key Points

• CalPERS reduced its stake in Republic Services by 14.6% in the first quarter, selling 75,649 shares and leaving it with 442,273 shares valued at about $96.9 million.
• Insider trading was mixed: director Sandra M. Volpe sold 1,800 shares, while major shareholder Cascade Investment bought 366,000 shares; insiders have purchased nearly 987,150 shares over the last 90 days.
• Wall Street remains cautiously positive on RSG, with 11 Buy ratings and 11 Hold ratings, a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, and an average price target of $243.89. The stock also recently beat earnings estimates, reporting $1.70 EPS versus $1.64 expected.

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 14.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 442,273 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 75,649 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.14% of Republic Services worth $96,867,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of RSG. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Republic Services during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new stake in Republic Services during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 57.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sandra M. Volpe sold 1,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.28, for a total value of $380,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 58 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,254.24. This represents a 96.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. bought 366,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $202.24 per share, with a total value of $74,019,840.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 110,315,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,310,304,199.68. This trade represents a 0.33% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 987,150 shares of company stock worth $202,366,682. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on RSG shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $247.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Republic Services from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $233.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Argus lowered Republic Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $243.89.

Republic Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RSG opened at $222.43 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $68.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.40. Republic Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.41 and a twelve month high of $246.25. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $210.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $214.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.06. Republic Services had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 18.57%. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.10 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.58 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

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

About Republic Services

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.