Hantz Financial Services Inc. Has $5.75 Million Stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,508 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,583 shares during the quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $5,753,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 2.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,146,111 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,686,203,000 after purchasing an additional 168,818 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 11.3% in the third quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 5,120,772 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,063,072,000 after purchasing an additional 520,096 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,240,429 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $854,446,000 after buying an additional 280,455 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 94,414.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,591,584 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $538,013,000 after acquiring an additional 2,588,842 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 12.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,433,408 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $505,175,000 after purchasing an additional 276,287 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total value of $66,795.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at $834,946.25. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock traded up $9.81 during trading on Thursday, hitting $219.36. 1,346,478 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,713,679. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock's fifty day moving average is $212.26 and its 200 day moving average is $211.28. The stock has a market cap of $88.04 billion, a PE ratio of 33.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.77. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $184.72 and a 12 month high of $230.39.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Waste Management from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $231.39.

Waste Management Company 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.