Sapient Capital LLC Sells 2,994 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Sapient Capital LLC lowered its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 89,723 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,994 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $19,694,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Saudi Central Bank bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the first quarter worth $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Waste Management during the first quarter worth about $38,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new position in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter worth about $40,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, eCIO Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 1st quarter valued at about $53,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total value of $299,542.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,373,112.40. This trade represents a 8.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, November 14th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $238.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $252.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. National Bankshares reduced their target price on Waste Management from $250.00 to $243.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. DZ Bank initiated coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $248.95.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $221.03 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $211.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $220.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $194.11 and a 12-month high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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). Waste Management had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 10.35%.The company had revenue of $6.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.96 earnings per share. Waste Management’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

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

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.