Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Bought by Envestnet Asset Management Inc.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 704,816 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 24,323 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Waste Management worth $142,225,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% during the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. purchased a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 65.7% during the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 174 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of Waste Management stock traded up $2.85 during 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 1,639,419. 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 company has a market cap of $92.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $227.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $218.28. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.59 and a 1-year high of $239.32.

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Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 1,251 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.92, for a total transaction of $282,625.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 8,420 shares in the company, valued at $1,902,246.40. The trade was a 12.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Morris sold 19,153 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.71, for a total value of $4,303,870.63. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,257 shares in the company, valued at $19,158,100.47. This represents a 18.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on WM shares. CIBC raised their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus 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.