Republic Services, Inc. $RSG Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada reduced its holdings in Republic Services, Inc. by 7.4%, owning 631,177 shares valued at $152.85 million after selling 50,334 shares in the first quarter.
• Republic Services has recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.625, representing an annualized yield of 1.1%, with the ex-dividend date set for October 2nd.
• Various analysts have upgraded Republic Services stock recently, with Scotiabank increasing their price target to $260.00 and the overall consensus rating at "Moderate Buy".

Royal Bank of Canada cut its holdings in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 7.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 631,177 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 50,334 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.20% of Republic Services worth $152,847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in RSG. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Republic Services by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 9,973 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,415,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Republic Services by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 8,648 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,740,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 4.2% during the first quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,154 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 6.2% in the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 806 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $195,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FORA Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Republic Services by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 7,659 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,541,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RSG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Republic Services from $262.00 to $268.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group set a $260.00 target price on shares of Republic Services and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $280.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Republic Services to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $257.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $262.17.

Republic Services Stock Down 1.9%

RSG stock traded down $4.38 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $229.47. 1,086,708 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 938,245. The company has a market cap of $71.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.66. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $197.60 and a 1-year high of $258.75. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $237.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $241.06.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.01. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.97% and a return on equity of 18.27%. The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Republic Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.820-6.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be issued a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 2nd. This is an increase from Republic Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.32%.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other news, EVP Gregg Brummer sold 7,338 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.94, for a total value of $1,716,651.72. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $949,796.40. This represents a 64.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. bought 4,258 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $234.91 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,246.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 109,816,832 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,797,072,005.12. The trade was a 0.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Republic Services Company 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.