Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Price Target Raised to $250.00

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its price objective lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $246.00 to $250.00 in a report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $250.00 price target (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Waste Management from $234.00 to $223.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.55.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM stock opened at $222.17 on Friday. 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 has a market cap of $89.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $219.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $219.17. Waste Management has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $242.58.

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

Waste Management Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total value of $299,542.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,373,112.40. This represents a 8.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 101.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new position in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Waste Management

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple broker upgrades/price-target raises signal analyst confidence and create upside expectations — notable lifts include TD Cowen raising its target to $270 (Buy), Oppenheimer to $264 (Outperform), Wells Fargo to $250 (Overweight), Stifel to $252 (Buy) and RBC to $235 (Sector Perform). These raises help underpin demand and longer-term upside.
• Positive Sentiment: MarketBeat piece argues WM is in a trend-following rally, supported by widening margins, accelerating free cash flow and a resumed buyback plan — factors that can sustain share-price appreciation. Waste Management’s “Boring” Business Is Powering a Quiet Rally
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend and buyback tailwinds: WM raised its dividend and signaled intent to resume repurchases (guidance assumes ~$2B in buybacks), improving shareholder-return prospects and offsetting share-based dilution over time. (Referenced in MarketBeat coverage.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry report notes long-term demand in specialized waste markets (solid control drilling waste mgmt. forecast to 2035) — a potential structural tailwind but only indirectly tied to WM’s near-term earnings. Solid Control Drilling Waste Management Market Size
• Neutral Sentiment: Full Q4 earnings call transcript is available for investors wanting detail on segment performance and management commentary; useful for parsing how sustainable margin and cash-flow commentary is. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results missed expectations on both EPS ($1.93 vs. ~$1.95 est.) and revenue (came up short of estimates). The miss pressured the stock as it undercut near-term growth/beat expectations that had supported the rally. Waste Management Stock Falls After Disappointing Q4 Results
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance was slightly below Street expectations (revenue/growth assumptions modest), leaving room for disappointment if execution slips — this is the primary catalyst for short-term downside risk.

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.