Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Acquired by Private Advisor Group LLC

Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 15.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 87,843 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,861 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC's holdings in Waste Management were worth $17,726,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during 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 last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 65.7% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 174 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. 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. Scotiabank upped their price target on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.94.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock traded down $1.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $227.96. 827,964 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,637,721. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $213.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $212.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.59 and a 12-month 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.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.88% and a net margin of 12.45%. On average, analysts forecast 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 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 presently 44.12%.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the 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. This trade represents a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total transaction of $903,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 18,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,185,967.59. This trade represents a 17.75 % 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 90 days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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.