Sanctuary Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,901 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,538 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC's holdings in Waste Management were worth $17,327,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WM. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. General Partner Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on WM shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Argus raised their price target on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total value of $903,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 18,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,185,967.59. This represents a 17.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total transaction of $152,868.87. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,046,109.78. This represents a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,055 shares of company stock worth $3,578,340 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM traded down $1.24 on Friday, hitting $227.89. 1,709,065 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,665,810. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.51, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $196.59 and a one year high of $230.39. 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 company's 50 day moving average price is $213.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $213.00.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued 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 38.88%. Research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. This is an increase from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.12%.

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.