Wells Fargo & Company Begins Coverage on Republic Services (NYSE:RSG)

Equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) in a note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer set a $256.00 price objective on Republic Services in a report on Friday, October 31st. UBS Group lowered their price target on Republic Services from $260.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $250.00 to $246.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Republic Services in a report on Wednesday. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $205.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Republic Services from $280.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $250.91.

Republic Services Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:RSG traded up $3.72 during trading on Thursday, hitting $209.74. 1,546,485 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,283,202. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $64.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.03, a PEG ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $220.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $235.17. Republic Services has a 1-year low of $199.43 and a 1-year high of $258.75.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The business services provider reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.12. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.97% and a return on equity of 18.27%. The firm had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.25 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.81 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Republic Services will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Republic Services

In other Republic Services news, EVP Gregg Brummer sold 7,338 shares of Republic Services stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.94, for a total value of $1,716,651.72. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,060 shares in the company, valued at approximately $949,796.40. The trade was a 64.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Cascade Investment, L.L.C. bought 4,258 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were bought at an average price of $234.91 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,246.78. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 109,816,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,797,072,005.12. This represents a 0.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Republic Services

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Republic Services by 10.0% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 479,222 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $116,048,000 after purchasing an additional 43,387 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in Republic Services in the 1st quarter valued at $22,078,000. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 6.3% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 19,063 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,701,000 after buying an additional 1,130 shares in the last quarter. Advyzon Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Republic Services during the first quarter worth approximately $272,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Republic Services by 5.9% in the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 31,699 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,817,000 after buying an additional 1,769 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.