Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Receives $255.67 Average Price Target from Analysts

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-four brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fifteen have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $255.6667.

A number of analysts have issued reports on WM shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.5%

Waste Management stock opened at $219.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $88.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.81, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.49. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $229.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $222.92. Waste Management has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Waste Management will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 617 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.13, for a total transaction of $150,628.21. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,345,356.91. The trade was a 6.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total transaction of $4,171,464.31. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 44,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,674,944.26. This represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 47,490 shares of company stock worth $11,416,338. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WM. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 51.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 2,320 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 1st quarter worth about $325,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 272,438 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $62,339,000 after purchasing an additional 20,122 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 68.2% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 366,416 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $83,843,000 after purchasing an additional 148,590 shares during the period. Finally, Glenview Trust co boosted its position in Waste Management by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 3,338 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $764,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.