Cerity Partners LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 585,829 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,594 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $128,713,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. RHL Group LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 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 issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $255.30.

Waste Management Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $216.13 on Tuesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $248.13. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $223.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.62. The firm has a market cap of $86.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. Waste Management’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.67 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.70%.

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.