Meeder Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 321.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,792 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 67,732 shares during the period. Waste Management comprises approximately 1.2% of Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $18,433,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its stake in Waste Management by 62.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Waste Management by 67.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 199 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $834,946.25. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Scotiabank started coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, October 4th. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $220.00 target price on the stock. 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 report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $226.11.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Waste Management stock traded up $0.74 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $219.05. 1,368,352 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,613,398. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The stock's fifty day moving average is $212.02 and its 200 day moving average is $209.86. The firm has a market cap of $87.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $168.73 and a 1 year high of $226.84.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $5.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. Waste Management's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Waste Management's payout ratio is currently 45.87%.

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.