Stenger Family Office LLC Makes New $1.03 Million Investment in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Stenger Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 5,120 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,033,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WM. Regal Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC now owns 27,566 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,562,000 after buying an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 9,368 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,890,000 after acquiring an additional 785 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 385,542 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $77,798,000 after purchasing an additional 10,477 shares in the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,182,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $268,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of WM traded up $1.27 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $230.84. 1,372,304 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,642,511. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $239.32. The company has a market capitalization of $92.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. The company's fifty day moving average price is $227.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $218.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management's payout ratio is presently 48.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total value of $42,062.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,349,728.38. The trade was a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WM shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, CIBC upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.76.

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.