CIBC Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by investment analysts at CIBC from $244.00 to $250.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the business services provider's stock. CIBC's price target suggests a potential upside of 9.58% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on WM. Melius Research raised shares of Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, June 9th. HSBC raised shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $210.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $251.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 26th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $251.00.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.6%

Waste Management stock traded up $1.42 during trading on Thursday, reaching $228.14. 2,895,650 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,625,065. The company's 50-day moving average is $233.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.83. Waste Management has a 52-week low of $196.59 and a 52-week high of $242.58. The firm has a market cap of $91.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.14 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.67% and a return on equity of 35.67%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.75 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Waste Management will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total value of $13,740,295.68. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,542 shares in the company, valued at $3,917,311.02. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,866 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $781,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 7,534 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,520,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.4% during the first quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 11,655 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,698,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. McAdam LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 3.1% during the first quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 1,482 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $343,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 3.0% during the first quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,533 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $355,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

About Waste Management

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.