Fifth Third Bancorp Purchases 62,041 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Key Points

• Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Republic Services by 232.4% in the first quarter, buying 62,041 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 88,739 shares valued at about $19.4 million.
• Republic Services has seen mixed but generally supportive analyst sentiment, with several firms raising price targets. The stock currently carries a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $243.89.
• The company reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, posting $1.70 EPS versus the $1.64 estimate and revenue of $4.11 billion, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.625 per share.

Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 232.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 88,739 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 62,041 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp's holdings in Republic Services were worth $19,436,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SteelPeak Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 12,386 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,625,000 after buying an additional 7,001 shares during the last quarter. Numerai GP LLC bought a new position in Republic Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $7,934,000. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $7,079,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 1,337.9% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 575,637 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $121,995,000 after buying an additional 535,603 shares during the last quarter. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 64,200 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $13,606,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RSG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective 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. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Republic Services from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Argus lowered shares of Republic Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $247.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $243.89.

Insider Buying and Selling at Republic Services

In related 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 transaction of $380,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 58 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,254.24. This represents a 96.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. bought 366,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 110,315,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,310,304,199.68. The trade was a 0.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders acquired a total of 987,150 shares of company stock valued at $202,366,682 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Republic Services Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of Republic Services stock opened at $223.41 on Tuesday. Republic Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.41 and a 52-week high of $246.25. The stock has a market cap of $68.73 billion, a PE ratio of 32.05, a PEG ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $209.34 and a 200-day moving average of $214.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.58 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

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

Republic Services Company 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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