Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) VP Sells $1,304,087.32 in Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) VP Michael J. Watson sold 5,732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.51, for a total transaction of $1,304,087.32. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 55,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,646,598.37. This represents a 9.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $229.73 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $215.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.69. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.59 and a fifty-two week high of $232.44. The firm has a market cap of $92.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.825 dividend. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 48.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on WM. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. CIBC increased their target price on Waste Management from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Nine investment 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.94.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Activest Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. General Partner Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

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.