Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Price Target Lowered to $204.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its price target cut by Royal Bank of Canada from $215.00 to $204.00 in a research note published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on WM. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Waste Management from $228.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Raymond James upped their price target on Waste Management from $219.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Waste Management from $240.00 to $235.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, CIBC upped their price target on Waste Management from $207.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $215.83.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $200.54 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $80.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $209.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $205.19. Waste Management has a 1-year low of $149.71 and a 1-year high of $225.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.82. The company had revenue of $5.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.52% and a net margin of 12.13%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.51 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at $9,711,680. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 4,799,687 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $859,624,000 after buying an additional 16,213 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $784,486,000. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,226,869 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $900,957,000 after acquiring an additional 1,303,466 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,997,367 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $357,729,000 after acquiring an additional 38,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Waste Management by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,931,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $345,851,000 after purchasing an additional 17,254 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.