Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd Reduces Stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd cut its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 32.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,002 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 6,780 shares during the period. Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd's holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,825,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WM. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,768 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,039 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Maia Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 1,213 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,091 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $624,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,511 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,717,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

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Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM traded down $1.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $227.80. The company had a trading volume of 1,264,803 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,616,188. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $224.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $216.56. The company has a market capitalization of $91.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.59 and a 1-year high of $235.81.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. Analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.825 dividend. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total value of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,446.72. This represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total transaction of $42,062.02. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,349,728.38. This trade represents a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on WM. Citigroup raised their price target on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $236.65.

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.