Park Avenue Securities LLC Purchases 2,534 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Free Report) by 49.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,702 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,534 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in Republic Services were worth $1,549,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TCW Group Inc. lifted its stake in Republic Services by 13.0% during the third quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 114,582 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $23,013,000 after purchasing an additional 13,138 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Republic Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,102,000. Lifeworks Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Republic Services by 1,112.3% in the 3rd quarter. Lifeworks Advisors LLC now owns 21,469 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,312,000 after buying an additional 19,698 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at $204,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 15.2% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,663 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,137,000 after acquiring an additional 746 shares during the period. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total transaction of $400,186.93. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 879 shares in the company, valued at $189,222.33. This represents a 67.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $1,326,906.36. The trade was a 44.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Republic Services Stock Performance

NYSE:RSG traded up $1.93 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $213.85. 1,252,829 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 890,373. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.73. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $209.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $204.52. Republic Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $165.99 and a fifty-two week high of $220.58.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.20. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 18.18%. The business had revenue of $4.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.54 EPS. The business's revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. Republic Services's payout ratio is currently 37.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Republic Services from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Republic Services from $220.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Republic Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Republic Services from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Republic Services has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $221.12.

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.