Trueblood Wealth Management LLC Increases Stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 15.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,497 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,409 shares during the period. Republic Services accounts for approximately 1.2% of Trueblood Wealth Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Republic Services were worth $2,542,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RSG. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 1.7% in the first quarter. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC now owns 28,943 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $7,009,000 after buying an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,074,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 61.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,193 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,226,000 after acquiring an additional 3,503 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 29.6% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,811 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,904,000 after purchasing an additional 1,782 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. raised its stake in Republic Services by 5.3% in the first quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 16,848 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,080,000 after purchasing an additional 851 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.73% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RSG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Melius Research raised shares of Republic Services to a "hold" rating and set a $281.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Republic Services from $233.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Republic Services from $229.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Republic Services from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $280.00 price objective (up previously from $268.00) on shares of Republic Services in a research note on Monday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $252.68.

Republic Services Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of RSG traded up $2.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $250.26. The company had a trading volume of 398,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,138,810. Republic Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $185.07 and a 52 week high of $258.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.58. The company has a market capitalization of $78.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.63. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $246.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $229.50.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.05. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 18.28%. The company had revenue of $4.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.45 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Republic Services's payout ratio is 34.99%.

About Republic Services

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.