Republic Services (NYSE: RSG) was upgraded by BB&T Capital Mkts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday. The firm currently has a $38.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on RSG. Analysts at BB&T upgraded shares of Republic Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note to investors on Wednesday. They now have a $38.00 price target on the stock. Analysts at Zacks upgraded shares of Republic Services from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note to investors on Friday, February 8th. They now have a $33.00 price target on the stock.

Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. The company presently has an average rating of “overweight” and an average price target of $35.25.

Republic Services traded up 1.78% on Wednesday, hitting $32.10. Republic Services has a 1-year low of $25.15 and a 1-year high of $32.40. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $31.29. The company has a market cap of $11.639 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.35.

Republic Services last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 7th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.00 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Republic Services has set its FY13 guidance at $1.86-1.91 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Republic Services will post $1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which is scheduled for Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th.

Republic Services, Inc. (Republic) is a provider of services in the domestic non-hazardous solid waste industry.

Get Analysts' Upgrades and Downgrades via Email - Stay on top of analysts' coverage with Analyst Ratings Network's FREE daily email newsletter that provides a concise list of analysts' upgrades and downgrades. Click here to register now.