Vega Investment Solutions Cuts Stake in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Vega Investment Solutions cut its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 99.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 154 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 15,484 shares during the period. Vega Investment Solutions’ holdings in Waste Management were worth $35,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Waste Management by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,662,207 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,617,866,000 after acquiring an additional 292,868 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.5% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,647,146 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,972,856,000 after purchasing an additional 126,329 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 30.4% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,316,443 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,233,240,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239,996 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,064,206,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Waste Management by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,067,680 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $941,709,000 after buying an additional 70,907 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE WM opened at $210.15 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $211.90 and its 200 day moving average is $222.46. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $194.11 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.84. The company has a market capitalization of $84.66 billion, a PE ratio of 33.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 27th. The business services provider reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $6.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 10.35%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.96 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 51.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $268.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Waste Management from $234.00 to $223.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Waste Management from $252.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, DZ Bank began coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $249.14.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total transaction of $299,542.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,373,112.40. The trade was a 8.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.