Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on WM. CIBC increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Waste Management to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.11.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM opened at $220.44 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $88.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.77, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $209.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $209.06. Waste Management has a twelve month low of $168.73 and a twelve month high of $225.00.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.88%. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.31 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Management news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $834,946.25. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norden Group LLC bought a new position in Waste Management during the first quarter valued at about $418,000. Advisory Alpha LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 1.8% during the first quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 4,707 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,003,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 3.3% during the first quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 22,025 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,695,000 after purchasing an additional 698 shares in the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,116,000. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 3.4% during the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 13,610 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,901,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by 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.