Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,200 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $278,000. Waste Management comprises about 3.3% of Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding.
A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $1,009,726,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 26,095.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,909,370 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $442,038,000 after acquiring an additional 1,902,081 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $340,611,000. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 250.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,658,733 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $334,716,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184,905 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 6,272,009 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,265,629,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151,237 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insider Activity
In other news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total value of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. The trade was a 40.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total value of $159,609.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,917,311.02. This trade represents a 3.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.
Waste Management Stock Down 0.5%
Waste Management stock traded down $1.28 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $231.94. 2,583,457 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,617,385. The company's fifty day moving average price is $233.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $224.04. The company has a market cap of $93.34 billion, a PE ratio of 34.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.59 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58.
Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a return on equity of 35.67% and a net margin of 11.67%. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.75 EPS. Waste Management's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Waste Management Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.77%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank raised their target price on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Melius Research raised Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup raised their target price on Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. National Bank Financial raised Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $248.00.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Waste Management
About Waste Management
(
Free Report)
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.
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