Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Has $9.59 Million Holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lowered its position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 85.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 58,162 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 345,935 shares during the quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.'s holdings in Republic Services were worth $9,591,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Parcion Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Republic Services by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 23,808 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,926,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Stokes Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Republic Services by 2.2% during the third quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 3,209 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $457,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. WASHINGTON TRUST Co grew its holdings in Republic Services by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 1,620 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $267,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Republic Services by 56.3% during the third quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Greenleaf Trust grew its holdings in Republic Services by 1.6% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 4,504 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Republic Services from $175.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. UBS Group lowered Republic Services from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the company from $175.00 to $195.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Republic Services from $182.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Republic Services from $182.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Republic Services from $213.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $197.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Republic Services news, CEO Ark Jon Vander sold 5,446 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.10, for a total transaction of $1,002,608.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 85,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,669,303.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Republic Services Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE RSG traded up $1.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $188.40. 712,098 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,138,404. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.81 and a 1-year high of $192.57. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $182.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $166.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $59.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.68.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The business services provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.13. Republic Services had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 11.57%. The firm had revenue of $3.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. Republic Services's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.535 per share. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 1st. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.12%.

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.