Johnson Financial Group Inc. Has $679,000 Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 101.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,793 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,909 shares during the quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $679,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sachetta LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 127.3% during the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.3 %

WM traded down $0.68 during trading on Friday, reaching $208.81. 1,270,886 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,614,986. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $209.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $193.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.71 and a fifty-two week high of $214.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.75 billion, a PE ratio of 34.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.72.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.98% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.29 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total value of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,611 shares of company stock valued at $546,839. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WM. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $165.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup lifted their target price 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. HSBC cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $221.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.61.

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.