Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Acquired by Ninety One North America Inc.

Ninety One North America Inc. grew its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 35.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 71,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,651 shares during the quarter. Ninety One North America Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $12,736,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of WM. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 8.5% during the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 28,912 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,407,000 after acquiring an additional 2,272 shares during the last quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 1.0% during the third quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 22,662 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,455,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Waste Management by 93.0% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 46,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,348,000 after acquiring an additional 22,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Waste Management by 13,927.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 504,296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $90,319,000 after purchasing an additional 500,701 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.7 %

Waste Management stock traded down $1.36 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $204.79. 362,999 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,663,042. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $149.71 and a 1 year high of $214.54. The firm has a market cap of $82.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.30, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $206.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $184.43.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.21. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 36.51%. The firm had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 53.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.58, for a total transaction of $153,899.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,934,010.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.50, for a total transaction of $461,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,959 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,080,935.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.58, for a total transaction of $153,899.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,934,010.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,507 shares of company stock valued at $4,157,770 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. HSBC downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $211.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.85.

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.