Renaissance Technologies LLC Has $61.23 Million Stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Renaissance Technologies LLC trimmed its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 41.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 304,361 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 216,500 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.10% of Republic Services worth $61,231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of RSG. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 17,682 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,586,000 after purchasing an additional 4,827 shares during the last quarter. TCW Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 114,582 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,013,000 after purchasing an additional 13,138 shares during the last quarter. DnB Asset Management AS increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 65.1% during the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 72,931 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $14,672,000 after purchasing an additional 28,764 shares during the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB bought a new position in shares of Republic Services during the 4th quarter worth $4,430,000. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its stake in Republic Services by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 44,134 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,879,000 after acquiring an additional 2,548 shares during the period. 57.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on RSG. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. CIBC raised Republic Services from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $264.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, February 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $238.50.

Republic Services Trading Up 5.2 %

Republic Services stock opened at $238.92 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Republic Services, Inc. has a one year low of $180.92 and a one year high of $249.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.61 billion, a PE ratio of 36.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.62. The business’s fifty day moving average is $232.38 and its 200 day moving average is $216.14.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 12.74%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.41 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is presently 35.75%.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total transaction of $1,436,062.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 10,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,376,931.20. This trade represents a 37.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.