Amica Mutual Insurance Co. Raises Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Amica Mutual Insurance boosted its Waste Management stake by 75.5% in the fourth quarter, holding 33,163 shares worth about $7.29 million at quarter-end.
• Several analysts remain constructive on WM, with recent price target increases from firms including JPMorgan, Oppenheimer, Baird, and Stifel; the stock’s consensus rating is currently “Moderate Buy” with a target price of $255.67.
• Waste Management reported better-than-expected earnings of $1.81 per share for the latest quarter and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.945 per share, payable June 18.

Amica Mutual Insurance Co. boosted its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 75.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,163 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 14,271 shares during the period. Amica Mutual Insurance Co.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $7,286,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WM. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 101.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO John J. Morris sold 4,211 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.38, for a total transaction of $1,024,873.18. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 99,929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,320,720.02. This trade represents a 4.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total value of $4,171,464.31. Following the sale, the vice president owned 44,146 shares in the company, valued at $10,674,944.26. This represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,222 shares of company stock valued at $8,552,294. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Friday, March 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $255.67.

Waste Management Stock Down 1.4%

Waste Management stock opened at $211.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.49. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $194.11 and a fifty-two week high of $248.13. The stock's fifty day moving average is $224.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.04.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.The business had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.67 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.70%.

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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