Broyhill Asset Management Takes Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Broyhill Asset Management purchased a new position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,237 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $250,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in 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 period. General Partner Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WM traded up $1.27 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $230.84. 1,372,304 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,639,884. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $227.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $218.80. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $239.32. The firm has a market cap of $92.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.95, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. This is a boost from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Waste Management's payout ratio is presently 48.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WM. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. 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 note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.76.

Insider Activity

In other Waste Management 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,349,728.38. This trade represents a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,995,045.36. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.