Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,494,376 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 132,029 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.37% of Waste Management worth $301,550,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total value of $46,094.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,999,506.30. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $227.80 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $91.60 billion, a PE ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s 50 day moving average is $224.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $216.63. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.59 and a 52 week high of $235.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share 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 37.93%. Equities analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.825 dividend. 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 48.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. 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 report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.65.

About Waste Management

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.