Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 5,053 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 62.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,034 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 5,053 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $612,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 12.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,433,408 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $505,175,000 after purchasing an additional 276,287 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its stake in Waste Management by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 12,706 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,638,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Waste Management by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. now owns 11,210 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,327,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 245.6% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,413 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,954,000 after acquiring an additional 6,689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the third quarter worth $562,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WM shares. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group upped their target price 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. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. CIBC increased their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total transaction of $152,868.87. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,046,109.78. The trade was a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Morris sold 19,153 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.71, for a total value of $4,303,870.63. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,257 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,158,100.47. The trade was a 18.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE WM traded down $1.03 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $228.93. 1,797,136 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,645,475. The firm has a market cap of $92.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.67, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $227.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $219.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.59 and a 12-month high of $239.32.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given 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 1.44%. This is a boost from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.53%.

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.