Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Boosts Position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its position in Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 6,262,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 218,729 shares during the quarter. Republic Services comprises approximately 1.4% of Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Republic Services were worth $1,259,855,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 70.2% during the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 177 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Republic Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $553,039,000. NEOS Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Republic Services by 29.8% during the fourth quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 10,823 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,171,000 after acquiring an additional 2,486 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 17,445 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,510,000 after buying an additional 2,339 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 21,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,322,000 after acquiring an additional 2,025 shares in the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RSG. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up previously from $244.00) on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $239.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Republic Services from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $236.88.

Republic Services Price Performance

NYSE:RSG opened at $239.98 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $227.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $213.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $74.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.73. Republic Services, Inc. has a one year low of $180.92 and a one year high of $241.09.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 last year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given 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 0.97%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is 35.75%.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total value of $1,436,062.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,376,931.20. The trade was a 37.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.