Vontobel Holding Ltd. Has $9.38 Million Stock Holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 46,617 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 856 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $9,378,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Republic Services during the third quarter worth about $25,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Republic Services during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in Republic Services during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Republic Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new position in Republic Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. 57.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RSG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Republic Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.38.

Republic Services Stock Up 2.9 %

NYSE:RSG opened at $230.98 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $210.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Republic Services, Inc. has a one year low of $177.03 and a one year high of $232.52. The company has a market cap of $72.33 billion, a PE ratio of 36.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.74.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last issued its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 18.18%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

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 given a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.12%.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other news, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total value of $400,186.93. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 879 shares in the company, valued at $189,222.33. The trade was a 67.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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 transaction of $1,065,011.42. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,326,906.36. This represents a 44.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.