Stack Financial Management Inc Cuts Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Stack Financial Management Inc cut its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 150,265 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,984 shares during the quarter. Waste Management accounts for about 3.0% of Stack Financial Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Stack Financial Management Inc’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $26,912,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WM. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Spirit of America Management Corp NY lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 127.3% in the 4th quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,217,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Waste Management news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 329 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.56, for a total transaction of $65,326.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,096,448.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,007 shares of company stock valued at $3,696,520. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM traded down $1.70 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $211.00. 673,319 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,658,558. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $208.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $186.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.90. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.71 and a 1-year high of $214.54. The company has a market cap of $84.67 billion, a PE ratio of 34.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.72.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.98% and a return on equity of 38.82%. Waste Management’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Waste Management from $165.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. HSBC downgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $211.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Seven investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.08.

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.