Citigroup Cuts Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) Price Target to $244.00

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) had its target price decreased by Citigroup from $268.00 to $244.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the business services provider’s stock.

RSG has been the subject of several other reports. National Bankshares reduced their price objective on Republic Services from $270.00 to $241.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Republic Services from $250.00 to $246.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Oppenheimer set a $256.00 price objective on Republic Services in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Robert W. Baird set a $240.00 target price on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $248.00 price target on shares of Republic Services and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Republic Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.23.

Republic Services Price Performance

RSG opened at $210.99 on Friday. Republic Services has a fifty-two week low of $201.42 and a fifty-two week high of $258.75. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $212.61 and a 200 day moving average of $223.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $65.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.40, a PEG ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.55.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The business services provider reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.12. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 18.24%. The business had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.81 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Republic Services will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were paid a $0.625 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Republic Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.20%.

Insider Activity at Republic Services

In other news, Director Katharine Weymouth purchased 478 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $209.46 per share, with a total value of $100,121.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 5,740 shares in the company, valued at $1,202,300.40. This trade represents a 9.08% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Republic Services

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Republic Services by 0.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,107,360 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,384,757,000 after buying an additional 49,365 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Republic Services by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,821,387 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,187,328,000 after acquiring an additional 144,003 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Republic Services by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,098,273 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $711,003,000 after purchasing an additional 409,142 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $690,313,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 10.1% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,379,682 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $586,854,000 after purchasing an additional 218,114 shares during the last quarter. 57.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Republic Services Company Profile

Republic Services, Inc is a leading provider of non-hazardous solid waste and recycling services in the United States. The company offers a broad range of waste management solutions to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers, positioning itself as a full-service partner for everyday waste collection as well as specialized disposal needs.

Republic’s core operations include curbside and commercial collection, transfer and hauling, materials recovery and recycling facilities, and landfill disposal.