Waste Management (NYSE:WM) PT Raised to $227.00

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its price objective increased by Stifel Nicolaus from $215.00 to $227.00 in a research note published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on WM. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $188.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. HSBC lowered Waste Management from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $210.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Waste Management from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $215.88.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $212.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $208.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $187.69. The stock has a market cap of $85.07 billion, a PE ratio of 34.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Management has a one year low of $149.71 and a one year high of $214.54.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $5.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Waste Management will post 7.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.75 dividend. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.10%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total value of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 1,782 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.23, for a total transaction of $363,937.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 55,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,353,349.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,007 shares of company stock valued at $3,696,520. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WM. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 170.5% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 119 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Sachetta LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.