Donald Smith Sells 690 Shares of Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) VP Donald Smith sold 690 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.59, for a total transaction of $151,517.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 13,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,937,235.84. The trade was a 4.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE:WM opened at $225.11 on Wednesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $194.11 and a 52-week high of $242.58. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $219.66 and a 200 day moving average of $219.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The business had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.70 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 49.25%.

Key Stories Impacting Waste Management

Here are the key news stories impacting Waste Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have raised price targets on WM across multiple reports (new targets run roughly from low‑$235s up to $270), reflecting stronger confidence in the company’s outlook and supporting buying interest. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Post‑earnings commentary highlights healthy cash flow, margin resilience and RNG (renewable natural gas) initiatives — operational positives that underpin higher analyst targets and medium‑term earnings potential. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Operational win / responsiveness: Waste Management is partnering with the City of Jackson for winter‑storm trash collection recovery efforts, showing local operations and emergency response capability that can support near‑term revenue and community relations. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Brand/sponsorship exposure at the WM Phoenix Open (Pro‑Am draws, Birds Nest concerts and other event coverage) boosts visibility and marketing value but is unlikely to move fundamentals materially in the short term. Read More. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Local and event safety coverage: reporting on what the Phoenix Open is doing differently this year (and how police are handling impaired driving around the event) is primarily reputational and operations‑related — monitor headlines but expect limited direct impact on earnings. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Cluster of insider sales disclosed for Jan. 30 — multiple senior executives (CFO, COO, several SVPs/VPs and others) reported modest reductions in holdings. These look like routine monetizations (not departures) but the concentration of filings may create short‑term investor caution. Representative filings: Read More. and Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. DZ Bank assumed coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.55.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 101.5% during the 3rd 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 during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter worth about $40,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.