Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Has $39.09 Million Stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 191,615 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,365 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $39,086,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WM. Activest Wealth Management raised its stake in Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake 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 period. General Partner Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 65.7% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,014,446.72. This represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 5,826 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.12, for a total value of $1,294,071.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,424,457.04. The trade was a 7.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 16,055 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,340 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James upped their target price on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.50.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $227.80 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $230.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $212.00 and its 200-day moving average is $211.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its 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 return on equity of 38.88% and a net margin of 12.45%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.