Aquatic Capital Management LLC Sells 9,929 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 30.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,071 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 9,929 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC's holdings in Waste Management were worth $4,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WM. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 892.9% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. General Partner Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM traded up $4.75 on Wednesday, hitting $233.55. 1,954,835 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,648,005. The company's 50 day moving average price is $227.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $219.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.35, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $196.59 and a one year high of $239.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.14 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.75 EPS. Research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Waste Management's payout ratio is 48.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $242.35.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,995,045.36. The trade was a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 1,251 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.92, for a total value of $282,625.92. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 8,420 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,902,246.40. This trade represents a 12.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Profile

Waste Management, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.