Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY Decreases Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY decreased its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 33.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,268 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 14,001 shares during the period. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY's holdings in Waste Management were worth $5,817,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WM. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Waste Management by 63.7% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,345 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $599,000 after purchasing an additional 1,302 shares in the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $258,000. Golden State Equity Partners grew its stake in Waste Management by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 1,854 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,863 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $692,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 6,673.2% in the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,554 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $995,000 after acquiring an additional 5,472 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,324,156.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $330,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total value of $859,610.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,324,156.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $209.31. The company had a trading volume of 850,417 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,676,040. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21. The stock has a market cap of $83.95 billion, a PE ratio of 34.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $209.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $208.20. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.71 and a 1-year high of $225.00.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.82. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.52% and a net margin of 12.13%. The business had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.51 earnings per share. Waste Management's revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Waste Management's payout ratio is 49.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on WM. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Waste Management from $215.00 to $213.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on Waste Management from $229.00 to $224.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $241.00 price target on the stock. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $215.83.

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.

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