Melius Initiates Coverage on Waste Management (NYSE:WM)

Investment analysts at Melius started coverage on shares of Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Monday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set a "buy" rating on the business services provider's stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on WM. Citigroup boosted their price target on Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $247.06.

Waste Management Stock Performance

WM stock opened at $236.33 on Monday. The business's fifty day moving average is $231.31 and its 200-day moving average is $223.48. Waste Management has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $242.58. The company has a market cap of $95.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.75 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Waste Management will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 40.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was 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 approximately $3,917,311.02. This trade represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WM. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $1,009,726,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Waste Management by 26,095.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,909,370 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $442,038,000 after purchasing an additional 1,902,081 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $340,611,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $333,089,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 30.4% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,316,443 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,233,240,000 after acquiring an additional 1,239,996 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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