Guardian Capital LP Purchases 6,991 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Guardian Capital LP increased its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 7.9% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 95,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,991 shares during the period. Guardian Capital LP’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $21,051,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 51.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares in the last quarter. Sprott Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 1st quarter valued at $325,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 67.2% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,733 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $854,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 12.5% in the second quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 7,088 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,622,000 after purchasing an additional 787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SouthState Corp increased its position in Waste Management by 17.5% during the second quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 6,538 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,496,000 after buying an additional 974 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total transaction of $1,165,136.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 78,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,084,739.94. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total transaction of $4,171,464.31. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 44,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,674,944.26. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 85,548 shares of company stock valued at $19,984,913 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on WM. DZ Bank initiated coverage on Waste Management in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Waste Management from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings raised Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.55.

Key Stories Impacting Waste Management

Here are the key news stories impacting Waste Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/coverage bullishness and thesis: Multiple recent write-ups argue WM remains a buy/retain due to its scale, dependable cash flows and margin expansion opportunities tied to Stericycle integration and network optimization. That supportive analyst tone can lift demand. Reasons Why You Should Retain Waste Management Stock for Now
• Positive Sentiment: Renewables and pricing tailwinds: Coverage highlights Waste Management’s push into landfill-gas-to-renewable projects and steady pricing power across collection and disposal — factors that support earnings durability and multiple expansion. Zacks: Retain Waste Management
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend increase: WM raised its quarterly dividend to $0.945 (annualized $3.78), raising yield and signaling confidence in cash flow — a concrete positive for income-focused investors. MarketBeat: Dividend and Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: “Tariff-proof”/defensive flows: WM appears on lists of defensive, tariff-resistant stocks institutional investors are favoring amid macro uncertainty — supportive but not company-specific. 247WallSt: Tariff-Proof Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Bull thesis summaries and comparisons: Several outlet pieces and substack notes summarize bullish rationales and compare WM vs peers (MEG), useful for positioning but not immediate catalysts. Yahoo: Bullish Thesis Summary
• Negative Sentiment: Small Q4 miss: WM reported $1.93 EPS vs. $1.95 expected and revenue of $6.31B vs. $6.39B consensus — the miss is modest but reminds investors growth isn’t perfectly linear and can cap upside near-term. MarketBeat: Earnings & Analyst Notes
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Recent insider sales (SVP Johnson Varkey and an executive sale reported by AmericanBankingNews) could be viewed as a near-term negative signal, increasing supply and adding caution for some investors. InsiderTrades: SVP Sale AmericanBankingNews: Executive Sale

Waste Management Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $246.24 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $227.95 and its 200-day moving average is $220.00. The company has a market cap of $99.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.57. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $194.11 and a 52-week high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). Waste Management had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 10.74%.The business had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.70 EPS. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.945 dividend. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.25%.

Waste Management Company Profile

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.