Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. Raises Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. lifted its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 592.0% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 16,920 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,475 shares during the quarter. Waste Management makes up approximately 0.9% of Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,610,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WM. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $86,364,000. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd grew its position in Waste Management by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 173,782 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,124,000 after acquiring an additional 4,199 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Waste Management by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 312,618 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $55,990,000 after acquiring an additional 48,549 shares during the period. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,673,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

WM traded up $0.81 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $203.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,286,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,715,307. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $149.71 and a 52-week high of $225.00. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $208.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $206.66. The company has a market capitalization of $81.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82. The company had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.52% and a net margin of 12.13%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total value of $859,610.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,324,156.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WM shares. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com lowered Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Waste Management to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued 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 $215.83.

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.