Raymond James Boosts Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Price Target to $229.00

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its price target lifted by Raymond James from $219.00 to $229.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

WM has been the topic of several other research reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Waste Management from $221.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group lowered Waste Management from a buy rating to a neutral rating and boosted their price target for the company from $190.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Waste Management from $211.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Friday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $214.21.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $210.10 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The business’s 50 day moving average is $208.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.29. The company has a market cap of $84.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Management has a 12 month low of $149.71 and a 12 month high of $214.54.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.09 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total value of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,217,331.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,217,331.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John J. Morris sold 8,889 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total value of $1,844,111.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 95,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,804,339.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 18,007 shares of company stock valued at $3,696,520. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. raised its stake in Waste Management by 1.2% in the first quarter. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. now owns 108,949 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $23,222,000 after buying an additional 1,249 shares during the period. Kellett Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter worth approximately $224,000. MBA Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter worth approximately $245,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter worth approximately $160,000. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.6% during the first quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 11,564 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,465,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.