Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Oppenheimer Analyst Says

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its target price hoisted by investment analysts at Oppenheimer from $255.00 to $260.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Oppenheimer’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 15.28% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Waste Management to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $251.29.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $225.54 on Wednesday. Waste Management has a 12-month low of $196.59 and a 12-month high of $242.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $232.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $225.44. The stock has a market cap of $90.76 billion, a PE ratio of 34.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.64.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a return on equity of 35.67% and a net margin of 11.67%. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.75 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total value of $13,740,295.68. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 83,934 shares in the company, valued at $19,922,574.24. This represents a 40.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 16,542 shares in the company, valued at $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WM. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 51.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its stake in Waste Management by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 124,848 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,193,000 after buying an additional 15,974 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Waste Management by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at about $295,000. Finally, Davis R M Inc. increased its stake in Waste Management by 46.4% in the 4th quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 1,958 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 621 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.