The Goldman Sachs Group Issues Positive Forecast for Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) Stock Price

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) had its price target hoisted by research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $239.00 to $265.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the business services provider’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 16.11% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets raised Republic Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $211.00 to $238.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $219.00 to $237.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Republic Services from $219.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Republic Services from $240.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, CIBC raised their target price on Republic Services from $217.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $229.25.

Republic Services Stock Performance

RSG stock traded down $3.15 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $228.22. 1,219,246 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 986,144. Republic Services has a twelve month low of $179.62 and a twelve month high of $232.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $211.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $207.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.74.

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. Republic Services had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 12.46%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Republic Services will post 6.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Republic Services news, Director Katharine Weymouth sold 1,859 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $189,222.33. This represents a 67.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Republic Services

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Planning grew its stake in Republic Services by 8.1% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 31,447 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,316,000 after purchasing an additional 2,360 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Republic Services by 14.5% in the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,162 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $233,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Mattern Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Republic Services in the third quarter worth approximately $201,000. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of Republic Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $673,000. Finally, CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT lifted its holdings in shares of Republic Services by 22.2% in the third quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT now owns 11,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,209,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.