Michael Watson Sells 687 Shares of Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) VP Michael Watson sold 687 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.79, for a total transaction of $150,995.73. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 48,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,715,861.45. This trade represents a 1.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.9%

WM stock opened at $225.11 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $219.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $219.14. The stock has a market cap of $90.69 billion, a PE ratio of 33.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.58. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $194.11 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 10.74%.Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.70 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WM. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings 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 worth $29,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about 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 Analysts Forecast Growth

WM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $256.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.55.

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.