Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 28,266 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 6.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 480,534 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 28,266 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of Waste Management worth $99,759,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its stake in Waste Management by 62.9% in the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. increased its position in Waste Management by 51.8% in the 3rd quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 211 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

WM stock traded up $0.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $205.83. The company had a trading volume of 3,679,965 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,632,453. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $82.61 billion, a PE ratio of 31.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.75. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $175.62 and a 12 month high of $230.39. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $217.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $211.51.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Waste Management's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.87%.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WM shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Scotiabank began coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $220.00 price target for the company. Ten equities research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $230.72.

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.