Waste Management (WM) closed the most recent trading day at $231.73, moving +2.35% from the previous trading session. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.28%. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a rise of 1.02%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw a decrease of 0.02%.
Heading into today, shares of the garbage and recycling hauler had gained 9.36% over the past month, outpacing the Business Services sector's gain of 0.6% and the S&P 500's gain of 0.67%.
Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of Waste Management in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings report is set to be unveiled on October 27, 2026. It is anticipated that the company will report an EPS of $2.18, marking a 10.1% rise compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $6.8 billion, up 5.61% from the year-ago period.
Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $8.09 per share and revenue of $26.4 billion, indicating changes of +7.87% and +4.75%, respectively, compared to the previous year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Waste Management. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the business outlook.
Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the past month, there's been a 0.05% fall in the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. Waste Management currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Waste Management has a Forward P/E ratio of 27.98 right now. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 26.87, which means Waste Management is trading at a premium to the group.
We can also see that WM currently has a PEG ratio of 2.89. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. Waste Removal Services stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 2.85 based on yesterday's closing prices.
The Waste Removal Services industry is part of the Business Services sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 73, putting it in the top 30% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow WM in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.
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Waste Management, Inc. (WM): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).