Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by AMI Asset Management Corp

AMI Asset Management Corp decreased its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 3.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 201,583 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 6,761 shares during the quarter. Waste Management accounts for about 2.7% of AMI Asset Management Corp's holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. AMI Asset Management Corp owned about 0.05% of Waste Management worth $46,669,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 51.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares in the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP grew its holdings in Waste Management by 811.1% during the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 9,102 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,837,000 after acquiring an additional 8,103 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 592,229 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $137,108,000 after acquiring an additional 24,023 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 46.2% in the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 34,617 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,985,000 after buying an additional 10,936 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fjell Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $1,124,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.6%

Waste Management stock traded up $1.42 during trading on Friday, reaching $228.14. 2,895,650 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,625,065. The company's 50-day moving average is $233.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.38. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.59 and a 52-week high of $242.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of $91.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.67% and a return on equity of 35.67%. The business had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.75 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Waste Management's payout ratio is currently 49.77%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were 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 owns 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. The trade was a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,542 shares in the company, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $225.00 to $277.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. HSBC upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $210.00 to $265.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $251.00.

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.