Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $220.06.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on RSG shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Republic Services from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC lifted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $217.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Republic Services Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:RSG opened at $208.97 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50 day moving average of $208.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $201.98. Republic Services has a 52-week low of $160.65 and a 52-week high of $220.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 18.18%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.54 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Republic Services will post 6.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.12%.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.02, for a total value of $1,065,011.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,326,906.36. This represents a 44.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total transaction of $400,186.93. Following the sale, the director now owns 879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $189,222.33. This represents a 67.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Republic Services

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 437.9% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,814,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $364,449,000 after acquiring an additional 1,477,255 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Republic Services by 23.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,004,199 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,205,883,000 after purchasing an additional 1,131,850 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 83,671.9% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 538,653 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $108,183,000 after purchasing an additional 538,010 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 544.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 545,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $109,580,000 after buying an additional 460,989 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in Republic Services by 169.3% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 554,500 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $111,366,000 after buying an additional 348,600 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.73% 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.