Owning shares of Republic is a bit like a having a stake in a collection of small near-monopolies. Building a landfill requires a lot of cash, involves miles of red tape, and faces intense blowback from the locals. These challenges keep competition at bay and have helped lead to consolidation in the industry.

It gets better
For starters, there's no real chance that technological obsolescence will undercut Republic's service offering. In other words, you're not looking at a Sony Discman-vs.-Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPod situation. Similarly, unlike Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM) or Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO), Republic doesn't spend billions on research and development every year simply to maintain its competitive positions. Waste hauling is as static a business as it is boring -- and that's a good thing.

And unlike with oil, gasoline, and other high value-to-weight commodities, it doesn't make economic sense to haul trash over long distances. That means you don't have to worry about distant competition threatening your localized pricing, as it often does in other industries -- picture local jewelers before Blue Nile (Nasdaq: NILE). Cement producers such as Vulcan Materials (NYSE: VMC) and Cemex (NYSE: CX) benefit from the same concept.

Now, take the ability to set local prices with minimal competition, combine it with the rational pricing of this consolidating industry, and it's little wonder that Republic and the other major waste haulers are able to push around their customers. For its part, Republic has increased its prices 7% over the past year.

Dumping it all together
There's a lot to love about such sturdy, growing dividend payers -- just ask Republic's largest investor, Microsoft 's Bill Gates. Republic is typical of most Income Investor recommendations: strong, well-managed, and boasting healthy cash flows and a sustainable dividend.

On the surface, there isn't much pizzazz to dividend-focused investing, but as Jeremy Siegel's research and Income Investor's results have shown, the strategy is a proven winner.

Since the newsletter's inception in 2003, the average recommendation (which currently yields 7.5%) has returned more than three percentage points more than the S&P 500. Subscribers receive fresh stock ideas each month, access to all past recommendations, and the team's top five recommendations for new money now. You can try the service free for 30 days with no obligation to subscribe. Click here to get started.