Waste Management (NYSE:WM) CAO Sells $11,529.10 in Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) CAO John Carroll sold 47 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.30, for a total transaction of $11,529.10. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,203,529.90. This represents a 0.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock traded down $0.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $238.41. The stock had a trading volume of 544,796 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,358,660. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $229.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $220.29. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $248.13. The stock has a market cap of $96.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22.

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

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WM. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” 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 target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “peer perform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.55.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Management

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Waste Management by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,990,067 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,566,508,000 after purchasing an additional 553,605 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,390,748 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,820,921,000 after purchasing an additional 281,456 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,993,006 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,972,371,000 after buying an additional 117,476 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 5.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,668,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,250,613,000 after buying an additional 277,250 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $1,022,916,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

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.