Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Receives "Outperform" Rating from William Blair

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reiterated by equities research analysts at William Blair in a research note issued on Tuesday,RTT News reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on WM. Hsbc Global Res raised Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank increased their target price on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $239.28.

Waste Management Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of WM traded down $2.81 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $226.27. The stock had a trading volume of 525,853 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,644,197. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. The company has a market capitalization of $91.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Management has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $239.32. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $227.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $219.90.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. The business had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.75 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Management will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,995,045.36. The trade was a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total value of $46,094.95. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,066 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,999,506.30. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Westend Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 126.9% during the 1st 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 last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC raised its stake in Waste Management by 69.0% during the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, General Partner Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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