Washington Trust Bank Sells 1,976 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Washington Trust Bank trimmed its stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 64,821 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,976 shares during the quarter. Republic Services accounts for 1.3% of Washington Trust Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Washington Trust Bank’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $13,041,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 2,870 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $577,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Algebris UK Ltd bought a new position in Republic Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,514,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC bought a new position in Republic Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $134,000. Xponance Inc. increased its position in Republic Services by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 31,504 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,338,000 after buying an additional 2,360 shares during the period. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new position in Republic Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. 57.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RSG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. CIBC raised Republic Services from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $264.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Argus set a $260.00 price objective on Republic Services in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (up previously from $244.00) on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, February 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Republic Services

In other news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of the business’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 in the company, valued at $2,376,931.20. The trade was a 37.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of RSG opened at $232.95 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $224.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $212.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.58. Republic Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $180.92 and a 52-week high of $240.95. The company has a market cap of $72.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.89, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.73.

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

Republic Services Announces Dividend

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

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.