Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, sixteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $255.6364.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Waste Management from $250.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM opened at $224.39 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $233.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $222.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.41 billion, a PE ratio of 33.49, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.54. 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 data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.70 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Waste Management will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.945 per share. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 56.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 121 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.27, for a total transaction of $29,677.67. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,279,294.11. The trade was a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 12,194 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total value of $2,847,055.12. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 6,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,406,483.52. This trade represents a 66.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 101.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 55.3% in the fourth quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 132 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

About Waste Management

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.