Lmcg Investments LLC Trims Stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Lmcg Investments LLC lessened its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 15,481 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 379 shares during the quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $3,114,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Republic Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its stake in Republic Services by 351.6% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 140 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A. purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Republic Services in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Stock Performance

NYSE:RSG opened at $213.85 on Tuesday. Republic Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $165.99 and a twelve month high of $220.58. The company has a market capitalization of $66.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.73. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $209.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $204.59.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.12 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 12.46%. Republic Services’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.54 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. Republic Services’s payout ratio is 37.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on RSG shares. CIBC lifted their target price on Republic Services from $217.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $211.00 to $238.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.12.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Republic Services news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.02, for a total value of $1,065,011.42. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,326,906.36. This trade represents a 44.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the 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 transaction, the director now owns 879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $189,222.33. The trade was a 67.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.