Natixis Purchases 6,662 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Natixis increased its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 59.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,868 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 6,662 shares during the period. Natixis' holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,606,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock traded up $0.81 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $228.28. 2,115,581 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,645,530. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.84 billion, a PE ratio of 33.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $239.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $227.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $219.67.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released 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 net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. On average, research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.825 dividend. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. HSBC upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $210.00 to $265.00 in a report on Friday. UBS Group lifted their target price on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. CIBC upped their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $239.28.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,576 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.12, for a total transaction of $1,016,421.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 58,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,052,881.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,995,045.36. The trade was a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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.