Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Price Target Raised to $255.00 at Citigroup

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its target price lifted by Citigroup from $242.00 to $255.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the business services provider’s stock.

WM has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.50.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $224.67 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.18 billion, a PE ratio of 33.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management has a 1-year low of $187.48 and a 1-year high of $230.39. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $212.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.88% and a net margin of 12.45%. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,576 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.12, for a total value of $1,016,421.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 58,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,052,881.80. This represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total transaction of $46,094.95. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,999,506.30. This trade represents a 2.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,055 shares of company stock valued at $2,674,780. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 32.4% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 589 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $119,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Norden Group LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 8,352 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,685,000 after acquiring an additional 1,147 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $113,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 31.2% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 6,138 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,242,000 after purchasing an additional 1,461 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently 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.