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

Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $254.5909.

WM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company.

Waste Management Price Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $226.35 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $231.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $220.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.78, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. Waste Management has a 52-week low of $194.11 and a 52-week high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 10.74%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.70 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.42%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total value of $4,171,464.31. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 44,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,674,944.26. This represents a 28.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO John J. Morris sold 4,211 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.38, for a total transaction of $1,024,873.18. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 99,929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,320,720.02. The trade was a 4.04% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 98,042 shares of company stock valued at $23,039,777 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 132 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 101.5% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $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.