Amica Mutual Insurance Co. Sells 2,618 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Amica Mutual Insurance Co. lessened its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 18,892 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,618 shares during the period. Amica Mutual Insurance Co.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,812,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. General Partner Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total transaction of $152,868.87. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,046,109.78. This represents a 1.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,446.72. This represents a 5.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM opened at $228.90 on Thursday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.59 and a 52 week 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 stock has a market cap of $92.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $223.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $216.28.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Scotiabank increased their target price on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James lifted their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased 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. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $236.65.

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.