Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $243.2632.

Several equities analysts have commented on RSG shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Republic Services from $242.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Argus downgraded shares of Republic Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Republic Services from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Republic Services from $240.00 to $223.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Republic Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sandra M. Volpe sold 1,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.28, for a total transaction of $380,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 58 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,254.24. The trade was a 96.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. purchased 366,000 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $202.24 per share, with a total value of $74,019,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 110,315,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,310,304,199.68. The trade was a 0.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 987,150 shares of company stock valued at $202,366,682. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Republic Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RSG. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new stake in Republic Services in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Republic Services in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new stake in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. 57.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Republic Services Stock Performance

NYSE:RSG opened at $209.75 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $208.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $214.52. The company has a market cap of $64.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Republic Services has a 52 week low of $196.41 and a 52 week high of $253.38.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.10 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 18.57%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.58 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Republic Services will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is presently 36.15%.

About Republic Services

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.