Brokerages Set Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Target Price at $248.25

Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-eight research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fifteen have issued a buy recommendation and three have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $248.25.

Several brokerages have commented on WM. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $252.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. National Bankshares reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $243.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Waste Management from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Waste Management from $277.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 11th.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM opened at $207.74 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $212.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.14. Waste Management has a twelve month low of $194.11 and a twelve month high of $242.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.69 billion, a PE ratio of 32.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.62.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The business services provider reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.03). Waste Management had a net margin of 10.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business had revenue of $6.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.96 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Waste Management has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Waste Management will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.97%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 101.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in Waste Management during the first quarter worth $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the first quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter valued at $40,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Waste Management

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.