Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Waste Management (NYSE:WM) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

WM has been the topic of several other reports. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC raised their price objective on Waste Management from $213.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, October 4th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $220.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.11.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $225.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50-day moving average of $213.19 and a 200-day moving average of $210.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.50, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management has a fifty-two week low of $168.73 and a fifty-two week high of $226.96.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 45.87%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $834,946.25. This represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 62.9% in the 2nd 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. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

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.