B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Purchases Shares of 16,545 Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 16,545 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,323,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of RSG. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 222.7% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 23,663 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,529,000 after purchasing an additional 16,331 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in Republic Services by 42.6% in the 1st quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,086 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $399,000 after buying an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Natixis boosted its position in Republic Services by 78.6% in the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 27,858 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,333,000 after buying an additional 12,260 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the first quarter valued at about $90,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Republic Services during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on RSG. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Republic Services from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $208.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $214.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. William Blair started coverage on Republic Services in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, CIBC upped their price objective on Republic Services from $208.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $215.71.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RSG opened at $212.62 on Thursday. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $158.68 and a 12-month high of $216.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $66.58 billion, a PE ratio of 34.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $204.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $198.54.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $4.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.12 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 12.46%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.54 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.24 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.02, for a total transaction of $1,065,011.42. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,318 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,326,906.36. The trade was a 44.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.