Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $220.80 and last traded at $220.69, with a volume of 162305 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $216.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised Republic Services from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Republic Services from $235.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets raised Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, CIBC lifted their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $217.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.24.

Republic Services Stock Up 0.7 %

The business has a fifty day moving average of $209.84 and a 200-day moving average of $205.94. The stock has a market cap of $69.16 billion, a PE ratio of 35.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Republic Services news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 6,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,326,906.36. This trade represents a 44.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total transaction of $400,186.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in Republic Services by 437.9% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,814,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $364,449,000 after acquiring an additional 1,477,255 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Republic Services by 23.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,004,199 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,205,883,000 after buying an additional 1,131,850 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Republic Services by 83,671.9% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 538,653 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $108,183,000 after acquiring an additional 538,010 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Republic Services by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,129,322 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $626,553,000 after purchasing an additional 509,116 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Republic Services by 544.7% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 545,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $109,580,000 after purchasing an additional 460,989 shares during the period. 57.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.