Sterling Capital Management LLC Buys 15,795 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 1,696.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,726 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,795 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $3,663,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Republic Services during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $617,165,000. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,765,623 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,857,698,000 after acquiring an additional 1,899,183 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,348,501 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,133,509,000 after purchasing an additional 1,490,719 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Republic Services by 18.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,070,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,074,513,000 after purchasing an additional 807,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. raised its stake in Republic Services by 118.7% during the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,011,541 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $214,376,000 after purchasing an additional 548,926 shares in the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sandra M. Volpe sold 1,800 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.28, for a total transaction of $380,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 58 shares in the company, valued at $12,254.24. This trade represents a 96.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. acquired 60,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $213.31 per share, for a total transaction of $12,947,917.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 110,803,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,635,597,400.42. This represents a 0.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 987,150 shares of company stock worth $202,366,682. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on RSG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Republic Services from $242.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Republic Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Republic Services from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Republic Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.26.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RSG opened at $216.46 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.41 and a 12 month high of $246.82. The company has a market capitalization of $66.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.06, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $207.25 and its 200 day moving average is $214.06.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.10 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.57% and a net margin of 13.00%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.58 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is 36.15%.

Republic Services Profile

Republic Services, Inc is a leading provider of non-hazardous solid waste and recycling services in the United States. The company offers a broad range of waste management solutions to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers, positioning itself as a full-service partner for everyday waste collection as well as specialized disposal needs.

Republic’s core operations include curbside and commercial collection, transfer and hauling, materials recovery and recycling facilities, and landfill disposal.