Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc Acquires 23,606 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 84.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 51,437 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,606 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $10,387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WM. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $857,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,039 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $411,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $546,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Balboa Wealth Partners grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 1,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE WM opened at $227.89 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $213.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $213.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.51, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. 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 1-year low of $196.59 and a 1-year high of $230.39.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. On average, equities analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WM has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group upped their price target on Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Argus upped their price target on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Nine research 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total value of $123,261.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total value of $903,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 18,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,185,967.59. This represents a 17.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 16,055 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,340. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.