Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Grows Position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,377 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,918 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.'s holdings in Republic Services were worth $15,832,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Republic Services by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,590,728 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,740,083,000 after purchasing an additional 144,719 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 6,262,325 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,259,855,000 after buying an additional 218,729 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Republic Services by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,317,804 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,069,836,000 after acquiring an additional 499,237 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Republic Services by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,565,137 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $918,045,000 after acquiring an additional 57,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $553,039,000. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Republic Services Stock Performance

NYSE:RSG traded up $0.42 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $239.73. 306,557 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,141,681. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.21, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. Republic Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $188.82 and a 52-week high of $258.75. The company's 50 day moving average price is $248.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $234.04.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 18.28%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.45 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be issued a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 2nd. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RSG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Melius Research upgraded shares of Republic Services to a "hold" rating and set a $281.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $229.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Republic Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $266.00 price target on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Republic Services from $230.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Republic Services has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $255.21.

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.