Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Bought by World Investment Advisors

World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 32.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,429 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,016 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors’ holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,508,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. OneAscent Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 6,287 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,269,000 after purchasing an additional 776 shares during the period. Bryce Point Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $469,000. RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $785,000. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Waste Management by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 8,315 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,678,000 after acquiring an additional 1,126 shares during the period. Finally, Scholtz & Company LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at $3,842,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Down 4.9 %

Shares of WM opened at $225.34 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.59 and a 1-year high of $239.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $226.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $217.35.

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

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 transaction of $46,094.95. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,999,506.30. The trade was a 2.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 44,405 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total transaction of $10,143,434.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 211,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,212,664.23. The trade was a 17.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank raised their price target on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $236.65.

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.