Brokerages Set Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) Target Price at $219.88

Shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eighteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $219.88.

RSG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank began coverage on Republic Services in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $224.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Republic Services from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC lifted their price objective on Republic Services from $217.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Republic Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Republic Services Price Performance

NYSE:RSG traded down $1.39 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $210.30. 835,883 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,112,415. The firm has a market cap of $65.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.71. Republic Services has a 52 week low of $160.65 and a 52 week high of $220.58. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $207.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $201.44. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.20. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 12.46%. The company had revenue of $4.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.54 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Republic Services will post 6.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Republic Services news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of Republic Services 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,318 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,326,906.36. This trade represents a 44.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total value of $400,186.93. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $189,222.33. The trade was a 67.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Republic Services

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RSG. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Republic Services by 2.1% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,229 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $627,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in Republic Services by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,189 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in Republic Services during the 2nd quarter worth $258,000. PGGM Investments increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 264.3% in the 2nd quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 8,842 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,718,000 after acquiring an additional 6,415 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 58,685 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $11,405,000 after acquiring an additional 1,224 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.73% of the company's stock.

About Republic Services

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.