Parnassus Investments LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Parnassus Investments LLC lowered its position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 430,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 37,216 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC owned about 0.14% of Republic Services worth $86,576,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Republic Services during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI raised its holdings in Republic Services by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 132 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RSG opened at $229.08 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $71.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.30, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.73. Republic Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $180.91 and a twelve month high of $240.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50 day moving average of $221.33 and a 200 day moving average of $211.50.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Republic Services news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 10,416 shares in the company, valued at $2,376,931.20. The trade was a 37.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, February 14th. Argus set a $260.00 target price on Republic Services in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group upped their price target on Republic Services from $212.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Republic Services from $240.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.88.

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.