Cheviot Value Management LLC Makes New $290,000 Investment in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Key Points

• Cheviot Value Management LLC has acquired 1,237 shares of Waste Management, Inc., valued at approximately $290,000, according to their recent SEC filing.
• Insider transactions revealed that CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares for a total value of about $13.74 million, indicating a 40.82% decrease in her holdings.
• Analysts are optimistic about Waste Management's stock, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a projected price target of $254.35.

Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,237 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $290,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 4,915 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,138,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 14,207 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,289,000 after buying an additional 493 shares during the period. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter worth $290,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 69.1% during the first quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. now owns 1,028 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the first quarter worth $448,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Waste Management from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, CIBC increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $254.35.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the company'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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 83,934 shares in the company, valued at $19,922,574.24. This represents a 40.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were 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 owned 16,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,917,311.02. This trade represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock traded up $0.39 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $230.93. 240,968 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,712,485. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $231.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $228.51. The company has a market cap of $93.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.19, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.64. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $199.69 and a 1-year high of $242.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.03. Waste Management had a return on equity of 34.37% and a net margin of 11.36%. The company had revenue of $6.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a $0.825 dividend. 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 1.4%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.96%.

Waste Management Company 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.