Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Reduces Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. decreased its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.7% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 59,996 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,929 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $13,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WM. Bey Douglas LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Bey Douglas LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Waste Management by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,398 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 10.2% in the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 485 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 6,348 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 2,973 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $683,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $219.17 on Thursday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $248.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $228.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $227.32. The stock has a market cap of $87.60 billion, a PE ratio of 31.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.42.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.04. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.11% and a return on equity of 31.68%. The firm had revenue of $6.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.92 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price target on Waste Management from $263.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Waste Management from $240.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.89.

Waste Management Profile

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.