Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Has $30.96 Million Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 13.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 133,745 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,301 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $30,963,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 69.0% during the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 87.6% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Melius started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday, June 9th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Melius Research raised Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $248.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total transaction of $13,740,295.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 83,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Waste Management stock traded down $0.31 on Tuesday, hitting $234.40. 1,576,697 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,617,750. The stock has a market cap of $94.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.36, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.66. The firm's 50-day moving average is $233.18 and its 200 day moving average is $224.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.59 and a 52-week high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.75 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders 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 yield of 1.41%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.77%.

About Waste Management

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.