Equities Analysts Set Expectations for WM FY2026 Earnings

Key Points

• Scotiabank cut FY2026 EPS for Waste Management to $8.05 from $8.36, below the consensus $8.18, and assigned a "Sector Perform" rating with a $250 price target.
• Waste Management reported Q1 EPS of $1.81, beating expectations of $1.75, while revenue of $6.23 billion slightly missed estimates; revenue rose 3.5% year-over-year and the company delivered a 31.9% ROE and a 10.99% net margin.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.945 (from $0.83), an annualized $3.78 (1.7% yield), and analysts have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target price of $255.67.

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) - Research analysts at Scotiabank decreased their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Waste Management in a report issued on Friday, May 1st. Scotiabank analyst K. Gupta now forecasts that the business services provider will post earnings of $8.05 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $8.36. Scotiabank has a "Sector Perform" rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for Waste Management's current full-year earnings is $8.18 per share.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.Waste Management's revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.67 earnings per share.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group upgraded Waste Management from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Citigroup cut their price objective 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. Wolfe Research started coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Waste Management from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $255.67.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.5%

Waste Management stock opened at $227.69 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.43 billion, a PE ratio of 32.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.49. Waste Management has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $248.13. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $232.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $222.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.945 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.70%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 121 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.27, for a total transaction of $29,677.67. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,279,294.11. The trade was a 1.29% 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 the SEC website. Also, COO John J. Morris sold 4,211 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.38, for a total value of $1,024,873.18. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 99,929 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,320,720.02. The trade was a 4.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 92,616 shares of company stock valued at $21,849,115 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Waste Management by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,990,067 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $8,566,508,000 after buying an additional 553,605 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,390,748 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,820,921,000 after purchasing an additional 281,456 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,993,006 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,972,371,000 after purchasing an additional 117,476 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Waste Management by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,668,221 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,250,613,000 after acquiring an additional 277,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $1,022,916,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Waste Management

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.

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