Lazard Asset Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Lazard Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 50,506 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,032 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $10,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 32,148 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,468,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the 4th quarter worth $246,000. Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 80,929 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $16,281,000 after purchasing an additional 11,503 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 20.4% in the 4th quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,900 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $785,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 161,783 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,548,000 after purchasing an additional 3,145 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Republic Services Price Performance

NYSE RSG opened at $237.80 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $240.45 and its 200 day moving average is $223.32. Republic Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $180.92 and a fifty-two week high of $253.54. The company has a market capitalization of $74.31 billion, a PE ratio of 36.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.58.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.05. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 12.74%. The business had revenue of $4.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.45 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be given a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is 34.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on RSG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Republic Services from $239.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, April 25th. Cibc World Mkts raised Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Republic Services from $233.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.00.

Insider Activity

In other 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 value of $1,436,062.60. Following the transaction, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.