Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Sells 1,480 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lowered its stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,188 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,480 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado's holdings in Republic Services were worth $5,872,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings 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 worth $3,740,083,000 after purchasing an additional 144,719 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 6,262,325 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,259,855,000 after buying an additional 218,729 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 499,237 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Republic Services by 1.3% during 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 buying an additional 57,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Republic Services by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,129,322 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $626,553,000 after acquiring an additional 509,116 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.73% of the company's stock.

Republic Services Stock Up 0.4 %

RSG stock traded up $1.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $250.42. The stock had a trading volume of 894,106 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,100,608. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.59, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Republic Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $180.92 and a 1-year high of $252.40. The company has a fifty day moving average of $238.62 and a 200 day moving average of $221.19.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.45 EPS. Republic Services's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio is 34.99%.

Insider Activity at Republic Services

In related news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total value of $1,436,062.60. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 10,416 shares in the company, valued at $2,376,931.20. This trade represents a 37.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $233.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, April 25th. Cibc World Mkts raised Republic Services from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Republic Services from $265.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Republic Services from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $249.00.

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.