Horizon Investments LLC Acquires 227 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Horizon Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,149 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 227 shares during the quarter. Horizon Investments LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,452,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its stake in Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. General Partner Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on WM shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James upped their target price on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.65.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total transaction of $42,062.02. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,349,728.38. This represents a 3.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total value of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $225.80 on Wednesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $235.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $221.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $215.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS 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%. Analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS 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 $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.53%.

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.