Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Price Target Raised to $260.00

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by Oppenheimer from $255.00 to $260.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the business services provider's stock. Oppenheimer's price target suggests a potential upside of 14.95% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Melius Research raised Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Waste Management from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $251.29.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM traded up $1.32 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $226.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,860,709 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,629,363. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $232.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $225.29. Waste Management has a one year low of $196.59 and a one year high of $242.58. The company has a market cap of $91.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.64.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.67% and a return on equity of 35.67%. The business 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 firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WM. Westend Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Waste Management by 126.9% in the first quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC grew its stake in Waste Management by 69.0% in the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in Waste Management in the first quarter worth $37,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.