Wells Fargo & Company Increases Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Price Target to $273.00

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its price target hoisted by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $250.00 to $273.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 15.68% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $256.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $254.59.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of WM stock opened at $236.00 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $230.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $220.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. Waste Management has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $248.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.22, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.57.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. Waste Management’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.70 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Waste Management will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 12,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total transaction of $2,847,055.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 6,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,406,483.52. This trade represents a 66.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total transaction of $1,165,136.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 78,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,084,739.94. This trade represents a 5.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WM. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,990,067 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,566,508,000 after purchasing an additional 553,605 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in Waste Management by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,390,748 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,820,921,000 after buying an additional 281,456 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,993,006 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,972,371,000 after buying an additional 117,476 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 5.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,668,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,250,613,000 after acquiring an additional 277,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $1,022,916,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.