Scotiabank Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Stock

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at Scotiabank from $250.00 to $255.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “sector outperform” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Scotiabank’s price target indicates a potential upside of 14.70% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.50.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $222.33 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.23 billion, a PE ratio of 32.70, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $212.16 and a 200-day moving average of $211.25. Waste Management has a 12 month low of $187.20 and a 12 month high of $230.39.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total transaction of $152,868.87. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,046,109.78. This represents a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,576 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.12, for a total transaction of $1,016,421.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 58,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,052,881.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,055 shares of company stock valued at $2,674,780. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its holdings in Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. General Partner Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Company Profile

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.