Oppenheimer Issues Positive Forecast for Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock Price

Waste Management (NYSE:WMGet Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by Oppenheimer from $251.00 to $255.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Oppenheimer’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 12.40% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. National Bank Financial raised Waste Management to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, CIBC upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $250.71.

View Our Latest Analysis on WM

Waste Management Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of WM stock opened at $226.86 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $91.29 billion, a PE ratio of 34.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s fifty day moving average is $233.08 and its 200-day moving average is $224.30. Waste Management has a 1 year low of $196.59 and a 1 year high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WMGet Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a return on equity of 35.67% and a net margin of 11.67%. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.75 earnings per share. Waste Management’s revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 16,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total value of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 83,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Westend Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 126.9% during the 1st quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 69.0% in the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

About Waste Management

(Get Free Report)

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.

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