Waste Management (NYSE:WM) Lowered to Buy Rating by StockNews.com

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

WM has been the topic of a number of other research reports. 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 report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Argus boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Ten 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $230.72.

Waste Management Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WM traded down $2.72 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $208.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,161,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,619,356. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $217.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $211.51. Waste Management has a fifty-two week low of $175.01 and a fifty-two week high of $230.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.95, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.51 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Waste Management will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at $834,946.25. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WM. Activest Wealth Management increased its holdings in Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 62.9% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter worth about $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 51.8% during the 3rd quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 211 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.