John J. Morris Sells 19,153 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) EVP John J. Morris sold 19,153 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.71, for a total value of $4,303,870.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,257 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,158,100.47. The trade was a 18.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Waste Management Price Performance

Waste Management stock traded down $1.31 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $222.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,262,872 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,530,250. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $235.81. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $219.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $215.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. 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 announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. Research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

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Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management's payout ratio is currently 48.53%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swedbank AB grew its stake in Waste Management by 67.2% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,765,594 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $366,537,000 after acquiring an additional 709,678 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its stake in Waste Management by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,741,090 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $361,450,000 after purchasing an additional 122,696 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the third quarter worth approximately $944,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 10.1% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,077 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Waste Management by 217.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,764 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,064,000 after purchasing an additional 10,109 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on WM shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of 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 boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $236.65.

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.