Brokerages Set Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) Price Target at $249.00

Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the nineteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $249.00.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Republic Services from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Argus set a $260.00 price target on shares of Republic Services in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Republic Services from $240.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, April 25th.

Republic Services Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of RSG stock traded down $2.91 during trading on Friday, reaching $238.55. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,874,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,109,353. The company has a market cap of $74.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.66. Republic Services has a one year low of $180.92 and a one year high of $253.54. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $240.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $223.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 12.74%. Republic Services's revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.45 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Republic Services will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Republic Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be issued a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. Republic Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Republic Services news, COO Gregg Brummer sold 6,293 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.20, for a total value of $1,436,062.60. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,416 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,376,931.20. This represents a 37.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Republic Services

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 675,163 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $135,598,000 after purchasing an additional 66,842 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,537 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC grew its position in shares of Republic Services by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,525 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its position in Republic Services by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 44,134 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $8,879,000 after purchasing an additional 2,548 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC boosted its stake in Republic Services by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 41,547 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $8,358,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.