Bradyco Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,849 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $575,000.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WM. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 1.1% in the third quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,130 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $857,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,768 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 3.9% in the third quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,039 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maia Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 1,213 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WM. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $236.65.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on WM
Waste Management Price Performance
Shares of NYSE:WM traded up $3.55 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $229.51. 1,906,115 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,524,995. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $218.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $214.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.29 billion, a PE ratio of 33.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $235.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76.
Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Waste Management Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. This is an increase from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.53%.
Insider Transactions at Waste Management
In related news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total transaction of $42,062.02. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares in the company, valued at $1,349,728.38. This trade represents a 3.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,547 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.11, for a total transaction of $352,886.17. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 44,037 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,045,280.07. This trade represents a 3.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 75,173 shares of company stock valued at $17,075,967. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.
Waste Management Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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