Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 5.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 187,640 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 11,691 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $43,441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Waste Management by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,866 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $781,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 7,534 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 11,655 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,698,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,768 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 609 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM opened at $233.94 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $94.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $242.58. The company’s fifty day moving average is $231.29 and its 200-day moving average is $223.55. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 49.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $210.00 to $265.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Seaport Res Ptn raised Waste Management to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.00.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total value of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. The trade was a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total value of $159,609.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,917,311.02. This trade represents a 3.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% 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.