Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd Takes Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Border to Coast Pensions Partnership bought a new stake of 40,000 shares in Waste Management in Q4, worth approximately $8.8 million, as institutional investors now own about 80.4% of the stock.
• Several analysts have raised price targets (e.g., Wells Fargo to $273, JPMorgan to $270), leaving a MarketBeat consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a target price of $254.82.
• Company insiders have sold roughly 98,042 shares worth about $23.0 million over the past 90 days, even as Waste Management increased its quarterly dividend to $0.945 (annualized $3.78, ~1.7% yield).

Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 40,000 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $8,804,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WM. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the third quarter valued at $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $254.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO John J. Morris sold 7,979 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.07, for a total value of $1,955,413.53. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 7,352 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.50, for a total value of $1,724,044.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,644,130. The trade was a 32.12% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM opened at $225.04 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $90.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.54. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $194.11 and a fifty-two week high of $248.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business's 50-day moving average is $233.35 and its 200-day moving average is $222.05.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. Waste Management's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.70 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a $0.945 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.42%.

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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