GWN Securities Inc. Invests $993,000 in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

GWN Securities Inc. bought a new position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 4,690 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $993,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Republic Services by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,213 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Access Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Republic Services by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. now owns 6,178 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,243,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 1.0% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 5,099 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,024,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 1,697 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $341,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 11.6% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 529 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,416 shares in the company, valued at $2,376,931.20. The trade was a 37.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on RSG shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Republic Services from $240.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Republic Services from $239.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.88.

Republic Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RSG opened at $232.08 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $221.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $211.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.73. 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 12 month low of $180.91 and a 12 month high of $240.95.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.75%.

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.