Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Given New $260.00 Price Target at Oppenheimer

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by Oppenheimer from $255.00 to $260.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the business services provider's stock. Oppenheimer's price objective suggests a potential upside of 15.83% from the company's current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on WM. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. HSBC upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $210.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $251.29.

Waste Management Stock Down 1.1%

Waste Management stock opened at $224.48 on Wednesday. Waste Management has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $242.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $232.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.91, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.64.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a return on equity of 35.67% and a net margin of 11.67%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.75 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 16,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total transaction of $13,740,295.68. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 83,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,009,726,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,902,081 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth approximately $333,089,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 30.4% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,316,443 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,233,240,000 after acquiring an additional 1,239,996 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 250.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,658,733 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $334,716,000 after buying an additional 1,184,905 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

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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