Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) Stock

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) had its price objective hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $230.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 0.02% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC increased their target price on shares of Republic Services from $217.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Republic Services from $220.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $211.00 to $238.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $225.00.

Republic Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RSG traded up $5.56 on Friday, hitting $230.05. The company had a trading volume of 184,844 shares, compared to its average volume of 945,775. Republic Services has a 1-year low of $177.03 and a 1-year high of $232.52. The stock has a market cap of $72.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $210.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $207.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.21. Republic Services had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 18.18%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. Analysts expect that Republic Services will post 6.25 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Republic Services

In other news, CFO Brian M. Delghiaccio sold 5,071 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.02, for a total transaction of $1,065,011.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,326,906.36. The trade was a 44.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.27, for a total value of $400,186.93. Following 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Republic Services

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Republic Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI lifted its position in Republic Services by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 132 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its position in Republic Services by 351.6% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 140 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Republic Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Republic Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

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.