M&T Bank Corp Reduces Holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

M&T Bank Corp trimmed its stake in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,513 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 570 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $5,736,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Republic Services by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,213 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $445,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Simmons Bank grew its position in Republic Services by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 1,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Republic Services by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. now owns 6,178 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,243,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Republic Services by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 5,099 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,024,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 16.5% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 382 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on RSG shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $212.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. 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. CIBC raised shares of Republic Services from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $264.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.88.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Shares of RSG opened at $234.28 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $73.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.10, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a 50-day moving average of $218.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $210.80. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $180.91 and a 12-month high of $240.95.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 18.28%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.75%.

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.