Dohj LLC Sells 2,470 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Dohj LLC reduced its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 17.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,610 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,470 shares during the quarter. Dohj LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new stake in Waste Management during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Spirit of America Management Corp NY grew its position in Waste Management by 66.7% during the third quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Rational Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Annapolis Financial Services LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 40.1% during the third quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 325 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Price Performance

Waste Management stock traded down $2.60 during trading on Friday, reaching $210.10. The company had a trading volume of 1,650,808 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,589,993. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $208.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $187.08. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.71 and a 1-year high of $214.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.31 billion, a PE ratio of 34.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $5.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.98% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.31 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.10%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 29,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.58, for a total transaction of $153,899.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,934,010.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total value of $523,750.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,007 shares of company stock worth $3,696,520 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $165.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $221.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $211.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.21.

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.