Morgan Stanley Institutional Investment Advisors LLC Sells 23,661 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Morgan Stanley Institutional Investment Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 1.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,584,799 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 23,661 shares during the period. Waste Management makes up about 42.1% of Morgan Stanley Institutional Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Morgan Stanley Institutional Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $349,971,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 67.1% in the 3rd quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,363 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $743,000 after purchasing an additional 1,350 shares in the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 4,704 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,039,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,849,752 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $408,481,000 after buying an additional 91,097 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Waste Management by 14.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 311,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $68,707,000 after buying an additional 38,697 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BOKF NA boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. BOKF NA now owns 16,488 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,641,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $256.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Waste Management from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total value of $4,171,464.31. Following the sale, the vice president owned 44,146 shares in the company, valued at $10,674,944.26. This represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 12,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total value of $2,847,055.12. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,406,483.52. The trade was a 66.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $238.91 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $194.11 and a 1-year high of $248.13. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $229.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $220.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.36 billion, a PE ratio of 35.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.57.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The company had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.39 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.70 earnings per share. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 49.25%.

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.