Bank of Montreal Can Has $351.46 Million Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,741,720 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 37,550 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned approximately 0.43% of Waste Management worth $351,462,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total value of $46,094.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,999,506.30. The trade was a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,576 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.12, for a total value of $1,016,421.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 58,765 shares in the company, valued at $13,052,881.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM stock traded up $2.85 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $229.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,920,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,637,537. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76. The firm's 50-day moving average is $227.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $218.19. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.59 and a 1-year high of $239.32. The company has a market cap of $92.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.72, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. On average, research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. This is a boost from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is 48.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.76.

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.