Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Cut to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management (NYSE:WM) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Friday morning.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. William Blair started coverage on Waste Management in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Waste Management to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $220.00 price objective on the stock. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $226.11.

Waste Management Stock Performance

NYSE:WM opened at $218.31 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $87.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.38, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $211.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $209.78. Waste Management has a twelve month low of $168.73 and a twelve month high of $226.84.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The company had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.51 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Waste Management will post 7.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 45.87%.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total value of $66,795.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $834,946.25. The trade was a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 62.9% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Waste Management

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.