JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 378,004 Shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased its holdings in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,753,077 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 378,004 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $553,864,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Republic Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI boosted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new position in Republic Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $48,000. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on RSG shares. Argus set a $260.00 target price on Republic Services in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $212.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Republic Services from $240.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Republic Services news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total value 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. This represents a 37.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Republic Services Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE:RSG opened at $238.37 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Republic Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $180.92 and a 12-month high of $241.09. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $227.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $213.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.73.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 12.74%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 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 issued a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.