Topic: How To Invest

Q: Pat: I really enjoy your Inner Circle emails. Can I get your opinion on Republic Services? Thanks.

Article Excerpt

A: Republic Services Inc., $148.95, symbol RSG on New York (Shares outstanding: 316.3 million; Market cap: $46.7 billion; www.republicservices.com), is a U.S. waste management company. It is the largest or second-largest waste management business in 95% of the markets where it operates. The company has spent over $5 billion on acquisitions in the past five years. Bill Gates, through his investment vehicle Cascade Investment, owns more than 34% of its stock. In May 2022, Republic completed the acquisition of US Ecology Inc. (symbol ECOL on Nasdaq) for $2.2 billion. US Ecology added nine specialty waste landfills (five of which are hazardous waste landfills); 16 transfer, storage, and disposal facilities; seven wastewater treatment facilities; and more than 80 environmental service field locations. US Ecology has almost $1 billion in revenue. It’s the largest hazardous waste landfill operator by volume in the U.S. In addition, its operations team has the technical expertise to accelerate Republic’s growth in this area. Republic’s revenue has increased 34.6% over the last…