PGGM Investments Sells 2,513 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

PGGM Investments cut its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 12.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,008 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,513 shares during the period. PGGM Investments’ holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,225,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WM. abrdn plc increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 315.7% during the third quarter. abrdn plc now owns 1,457,393 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $222,165,000 after buying an additional 1,106,773 shares during the period. Mirova US LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 26,116.4% during the fourth quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 913,904 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $163,680,000 after purchasing an additional 910,418 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 16.9% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,366,017 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $827,815,000 after purchasing an additional 776,491 shares in the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 128.2% during the third quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 898,796 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $137,012,000 after purchasing an additional 504,924 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Performance

NYSE:WM opened at $210.10 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $84.27 billion, a PE ratio of 34.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.71 and a fifty-two week high of $214.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $208.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $187.29.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.10%.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 329 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.56, for a total value of $65,326.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,522 shares in the company, valued at $1,096,448.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total value of $523,750.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,217,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 329 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.56, for a total value of $65,326.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,522 shares in the company, valued at $1,096,448.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,007 shares of company stock worth $3,696,520 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Waste Management from $165.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on Waste Management from $221.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.21.

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.