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

Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 15.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 87,843 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,861 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $17,726,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WM. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 709,678 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Waste Management by 32.2% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 14,060 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,919,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 6,117 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ledyard National Bank grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 2,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $228.40 on Thursday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.59 and a 12-month high of $230.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $212.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $212.70.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 38.88%. On average, equities analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm 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 1.44%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Waste Management from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.94.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total value of $152,868.87. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,046,109.78. This trade represents a 1.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 5,826 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.12, for a total transaction of $1,294,071.12. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,424,457.04. This represents a 7.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 16,055 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,340. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.