Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) Reaches New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $209.09 and last traded at $208.59, with a volume of 170972 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $207.07.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on RSG. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Republic Services from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. CIBC raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $208.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $214.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Republic Services in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $224.00 target price on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.71.

Republic Services Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market cap of $65.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.70. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $203.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $197.10.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.20. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 18.18%. The firm had revenue of $4.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.54 earnings per share. Republic Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Republic Services, Inc. will post 6.24 EPS for the current year.

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be paid a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. Republic Services’s payout ratio is presently 37.12%.

Insider Activity at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, Director Tomago Collins sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.01, for a total value of $649,632.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,486 shares in the company, valued at $3,549,832.86. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Republic Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Simmons Bank boosted its position in shares of Republic Services by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 1,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Republic Services by 0.5% during the second quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 10,603 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI grew its holdings in Republic Services by 2.9% during the second quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 1,860 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Republic Services by 16.5% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 382 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 4.0% in the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,433 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.