Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) Shares Sold by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 4.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,048,554 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 85,819 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.65% of Republic Services worth $421,525,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of RSG. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Republic Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 351.6% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 140 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A. acquired a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in Republic Services in the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Republic Services during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.02, for a total value of $1,065,011.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,318 shares in the company, valued at $1,326,906.36. This trade represents a 44.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total transaction of $400,186.93. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $189,222.33. This represents a 67.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Republic Services in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Truist Financial increased their target price on Republic Services from $220.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Republic Services from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $220.06.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Republic Services stock traded down $1.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $208.97. 805,739 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,108,608. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.64. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $160.65 and a 12-month high of $220.58. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $208.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $201.71. The stock has a market cap of $65.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.71.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.20. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 12.46%. The business had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.54 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.25 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.12%.

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.