Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 3,178 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,950 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,178 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $17,368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Essex Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Republic Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $202,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 112.4% in the 4th quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 8,249 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,748,000 after purchasing an additional 4,365 shares during the last quarter. Bearing Point Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Bearing Point Capital LLC now owns 18,741 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,972,000 after purchasing an additional 2,453 shares during the last quarter. Sfmg LLC bought a new position in shares of Republic Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,478,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Republic Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $617,165,000. Institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Shares of RSG opened at $201.45 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. Republic Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.41 and a twelve month high of $258.75. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $210.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $214.83. The firm has a market cap of $61.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.90, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a $0.625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is presently 35.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. purchased 366,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $202.24 per share, with a total value of $74,019,840.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 110,315,982 shares in the company, valued at $22,310,304,199.68. This represents a 0.33% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have purchased a total of 987,150 shares of company stock valued at $202,366,682 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on RSG. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $253.00 to $247.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $249.00 price objective on shares of Republic Services in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Republic Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $227.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $245.15.

Republic Services Company 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.