Pacer Advisors Inc. Has $7.62 Million Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Pacer Advisors Inc. lowered its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 18.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,741 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 8,294 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $7,616,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WM. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 9.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 826 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $176,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 50.6% in the second quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,766 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,937,000 after purchasing an additional 4,628 shares during the period. Advisory Alpha LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 7.6% during the second quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 5,065 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter valued at about $853,000. Finally, 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter worth about $332,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 6.2 %

NYSE:WM traded up $13.02 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $222.57. The stock had a trading volume of 3,160,935 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,811,485. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $184.72 and a 1-year high of $230.39. The company has a market cap of $89.33 billion, a PE ratio of 34.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $212.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $211.28.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.88%. Analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.87%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total value of $66,795.70. Following the sale, the director now 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, January 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. William Blair began coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $231.39.

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.