Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Reaches New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $235.81 and last traded at $234.59, with a volume of 212483 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $232.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on WM. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.65.

Waste Management Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $216.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $214.38. The firm has a market cap of $92.71 billion, a PE ratio of 33.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. Research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 48.53%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In related news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total transaction of $42,062.02. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,349,728.38. The trade was a 3.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total value of $29,135.04. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,045.36. This represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 66,406 shares of company stock worth $15,076,127 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WM. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,749 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,169,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 39.3% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,020 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $609,000 after acquiring an additional 852 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $141,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $73,282,000. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 9,504 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,918,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

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.