29,006 Shares in Waste Management, Inc. $WM Acquired by Mizuho Markets Cayman LP

Key Points

• Mizuho Markets Cayman LP initiated a new position in Waste Management, buying 29,006 shares valued at about $6.37 million in the fourth quarter.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive, with analysts holding a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $255.67; several firms recently raised targets or reiterated bullish ratings.
• Waste Management reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $1.81, increased revenue year over year by 3.5%, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.945 per share payable on June 18.

Mizuho Markets Cayman LP acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 29,006 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,373,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WM. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 51.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 2,320 shares in the last quarter. Sprott Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $325,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 272,438 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $62,339,000 after purchasing an additional 20,122 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 68.2% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 366,416 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $83,843,000 after purchasing an additional 148,590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenview Trust co raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 3,338 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $764,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on WM shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Waste Management from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $255.67.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $218.09 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $194.11 and a twelve month high of $248.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The company has a market capitalization of $87.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.49. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $227.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $223.51.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.The firm's revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO John J. Morris sold 7,979 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.07, for a total transaction of $1,955,413.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 98,656 shares in the company, valued at $24,177,625.92. This represents a 7.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total value of $1,165,136.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 78,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,084,739.94. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 35,296 shares of company stock valued at $8,569,283 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management 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.

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