Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock Has Average Price Target of $258.89 According to Analysts

Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $256.65.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce dropped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup upped their price objective on Waste Management from $263.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Waste Management from $264.00 to $263.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Waste Management from $252.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Waste Management from $270.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, CAO John Carroll sold 1,365 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.90, for a total transaction of $300,163.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 3,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $771,629.10. The trade was a 28.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in Waste Management by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 30,733,944 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,849,981,000 after buying an additional 535,079 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 2.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,008,931 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,013,831,000 after acquiring an additional 507,209 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.1% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,121,427 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $695,704,000 after acquiring an additional 35,322 shares during the period. Swedbank AB grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 17.0% during the first quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,392,868 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $549,857,000 after purchasing an additional 348,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Waste Management by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,320,966 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $533,340,000 after purchasing an additional 26,847 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Waste Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer initiated or reiterated a Buy rating on Waste Management, supporting the view that the company’s recurring trash-collection revenue and defensive business model remain attractive. Waste Management Gets a Buy from Oppenheimer
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect Waste Management’s third-quarter profitability to increase by a low-double-digit percentage when results are released later this month, creating a potential near-term catalyst if the company exceeds expectations. What You Need to Know Ahead of Waste Management’s Earnings Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Waste Management remains highlighted as a potential income investment because contracted trash-collection fees can provide relatively visible cash flow and support dividends. Monthly Dividend Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: The company temporarily suspended trash collection in Okaloosa County ahead of Hurricane Isaias. The disruption appears localized and weather-related, but could modestly affect near-term operations in the area. Waste Management Suspends Collection Ahead of Hurricane Isaias
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan lowered its price target from $270 to $235, although it maintained an Overweight rating. CIBC also cut its target from $250 to $225 and moved to Neutral. The reductions indicate analysts see less valuation upside than previously expected, despite both targets remaining above the current share price.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE WM opened at $210.01 on Tuesday. Waste Management has a 52 week low of $194.11 and a 52 week high of $248.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.75, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $217.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $222.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.71 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.11% and a return on equity of 31.68%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.92 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th were issued a $0.9450 dividend. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.54%.

About Waste Management

Waste Management, Inc, doing business as WM (NYSE: WM), is an environmental services company that provides waste collection, transfer, disposal, recycling and resource recovery services. Its customers include residential households, commercial businesses, industrial organizations and municipalities.

The company operates a network of collection operations, transfer stations, landfills, recycling facilities and waste-to-energy assets across the United States and Canada. Its services include curbside collection, dumpster and roll-off services, recycling, landfill disposal, organics management and specialized waste solutions.

Founded in 1968, WM has expanded from a traditional waste collection business into a broader provider of environmental and sustainability services.