KLCM Advisors Inc. Buys 488 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

KLCM Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 34.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,903 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the period. KLCM Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. KB Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.2 %

Waste Management stock traded down $0.38 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $204.98. The stock had a trading volume of 1,457,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,623,895. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.30. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $206.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $184.27. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $149.71 and a 12-month high of $214.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.72.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.21. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 36.51%. The firm had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.50, for a total transaction of $461,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,959 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,080,935.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Waste Management news, EVP John J. Morris sold 8,889 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total value of $1,844,111.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 95,461 shares in the company, valued at $19,804,339.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.50, for a total transaction of $461,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,959 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,080,935.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,507 shares of company stock valued at $4,157,770. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.85.

Waste Management 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.