Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) SVP Sells $29,135.04 in Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares in the company, valued at $1,995,045.36. This represents a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Johnson Varkey also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, January 31st, Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of Waste Management stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total value of $123,261.60.

Waste Management Trading Down 1.8 %

WM stock traded down $4.25 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $226.14. The stock had a trading volume of 298,264 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,518,740. The firm has a market cap of $90.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.26, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $235.81. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $217.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $214.49.

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

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. This is an increase from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $236.65.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. General Partner Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

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.