Equities Analysts Set Expectations for WM FY2026 Earnings

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) – Investment analysts at Scotiabank lowered their FY2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Waste Management in a research report issued on Friday, May 1st. Scotiabank analyst K. Gupta now expects that the business services provider will earn $8.05 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $8.36. Scotiabank has a “Sector Perform” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for Waste Management’s current full-year earnings is $8.18 per share.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. Waste Management’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on WM. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings raised Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $255.67.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM opened at $227.69 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $232.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $222.74. Waste Management has a 12-month low of $194.11 and a 12-month high of $248.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The firm has a market cap of $91.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.95, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.49.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WM. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 7,352 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.50, for a total value of $1,724,044.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,644,130. This trade represents a 32.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through 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 shares were sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total value of $2,847,055.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 6,024 shares in the company, valued at $1,406,483.52. This trade represents a 66.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 92,616 shares of company stock worth $21,849,115. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.945 dividend. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.70%.

Waste Management Company Profile

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.