Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Grows Stock Position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 221.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 515 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 355 shares during the quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $104,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Republic Services by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,213 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $445,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Simmons Bank increased its stake in Republic Services by 2.8% during the third quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 1,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $381,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Republic Services by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. now owns 6,178 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,243,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Republic Services by 1.0% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 5,099 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,024,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Republic Services by 16.5% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 382 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on RSG. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $211.00 to $238.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Republic Services from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Republic Services from $239.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Republic Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $229.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Republic Services news, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $189,222.33. This trade represents a 67.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Republic Services Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RSG opened at $228.22 on Wednesday. Republic Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $179.62 and a fifty-two week high of $232.52. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $211.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $207.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $71.47 billion, a PE ratio of 36.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.74.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.21. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 12.46%. The company had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.41 EPS. Sell-side 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 will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.12%.

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.