Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Price Target Raised to $265.00

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its price objective increased by Oppenheimer from $260.00 to $265.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $229.00 price target on shares of Waste Management in a report on Thursday, June 26th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Melius began coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Monday, June 9th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $254.35.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $228.89 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51. Waste Management has a fifty-two week low of $199.69 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $231.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $228.12. The company has a market cap of $92.11 billion, a PE ratio of 33.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.64.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.03. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.36% and a return on equity of 34.37%. The business had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Management will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 48.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total transaction of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 83,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,922,574.24. This represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 16,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Westend Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 126.9% in the 1st quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 69.0% in the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 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.