Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) Now Covered by Melius Research

Equities research analysts at Melius Research started coverage on shares of Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm set a “hold” rating and a $281.00 price target on the business services provider’s stock. Melius Research’s price target suggests a potential upside of 12.27% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Republic Services from $268.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Republic Services from $232.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. CIBC upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $264.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Republic Services to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Republic Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $252.68.

Republic Services Price Performance

Shares of RSG traded down $2.67 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $250.30. 655,547 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,259,009. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $246.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $229.01. Republic Services has a fifty-two week low of $185.07 and a fifty-two week high of $258.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.22 billion, a PE ratio of 38.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.63. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 18.28%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Republic Services will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Republic Services by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,761,276 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,543,231,000 after buying an additional 170,548 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 6,262,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,259,855,000 after acquiring an additional 218,729 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Republic Services by 0.7% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,939,202 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,438,237,000 after acquiring an additional 42,019 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,335,515 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,292,050,000 after acquiring an additional 17,711 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Republic Services by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,565,137 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $918,045,000 after purchasing an additional 57,616 shares during the period. 57.73% of the stock is 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.