ING Groep NV Sells 92,386 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

ING Groep NV cut its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 139,767 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 92,386 shares during the period. ING Groep NV's holdings in Waste Management were worth $29,016,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WM. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 62.9% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 67.2% during the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 199 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,875 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $834,946.25. The trade was a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock traded down $3.96 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $221.72. 1,214,968 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,616,502. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $211.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $209.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $168.73 and a 52-week high of $226.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.74.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.88%. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. Waste Management's revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on WM shares. Morgan Stanley raised 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. StockNews.com upgraded Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Argus raised their target price on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $226.11.

Waste Management 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.