Waste Management (NYSE:WM) PT Lowered to $204.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its target price trimmed by Royal Bank of Canada from $215.00 to $204.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a sector perform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

WM has been the topic of several other reports. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Waste Management from $240.00 to $235.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $207.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a buy rating and a $241.00 target price on the stock. Finally, CIBC upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $207.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $215.83.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $196.96 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $79.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.24, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management has a 12 month low of $149.71 and a 12 month high of $225.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $209.51 and its 200 day moving average is $205.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.82. The company had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 39.52%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.51 EPS. Research analysts predict that Waste Management will post 7.31 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.10%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $330,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 44,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,711,680. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 44,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. 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

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parnassus Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 4,799,687 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $859,624,000 after acquiring an additional 16,213 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $784,486,000. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 44.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,226,869 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $900,957,000 after acquiring an additional 1,303,466 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,997,367 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $357,729,000 after acquiring an additional 38,828 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,931,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $345,851,000 after acquiring an additional 17,254 shares during the period. 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.