Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC Buys Shares of 884 Republic Services, Inc. $RSG

Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE:RSG) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 884 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Republic Services by 7.3% during the second quarter. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. now owns 254,540 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $62,772,000 after acquiring an additional 17,280 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Republic Services by 10.0% during the 1st 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 last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in shares of Republic Services during the 1st quarter worth approximately $22,078,000. Ascent Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Republic Services by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 19,063 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,701,000 after purchasing an additional 1,130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Republic Services in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,356,000. Institutional investors own 57.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on RSG shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Republic Services in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of Republic Services in a report on Friday, October 31st. Citigroup reduced their price target on Republic Services from $280.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Republic Services from $257.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Republic Services in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $238.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Republic Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.45.

Republic Services Stock Up 0.2%

Republic Services stock opened at $217.51 on Friday. Republic Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $199.43 and a twelve month high of $258.75. The stock has a market cap of $67.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $218.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $233.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

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

Republic Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be given a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. Republic Services’s payout ratio is presently 37.20%.

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.