Highland Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 44,686 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,868,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter valued at $40,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the second quarter worth $43,000. Finally, eCIO Inc. bought a new stake in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at $53,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of WM opened at $221.39 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $89.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.86, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.58. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $194.11 and a one year high of $242.58. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $211.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $220.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

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

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 51.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total value of $299,542.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,373,112.40. This trade represents a 8.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $255.00 price objective for the company. Baird R W raised Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Erste Group Bank lowered Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Friday, November 14th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $238.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Waste Management from $252.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $248.95.

About Waste Management

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.