Swedbank AB Sells 25,519 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Swedbank AB cut its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,740,075 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 25,519 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned 0.43% of Waste Management worth $351,130,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 278,185 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $56,135,000 after buying an additional 2,127 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Waste Management by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,240,429 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $854,446,000 after purchasing an additional 280,455 shares during the period. Trium Capital LLP increased its holdings in Waste Management by 33.6% during the 3rd quarter. Trium Capital LLP now owns 12,031 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,498,000 after purchasing an additional 3,029 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Waste Management by 77.4% in the third quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 12,298 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,553,000 after acquiring an additional 5,367 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Waste Management by 6.2% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 480,534 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $99,759,000 after acquiring an additional 28,266 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE WM traded down $3.72 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $209.93. The stock had a trading volume of 2,151,448 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,736,224. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $184.72 and a 1 year high of $230.39. The stock has a market cap of $84.26 billion, a PE ratio of 32.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $212.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $211.29.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The company had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.51 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. Waste Management's revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.87%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at $834,946.25. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC raised their target price on Waste Management from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $231.39.

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.