Davis R M Inc. Buys 1,328 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Key Points

• Davis R M Inc. increased its ownership in Waste Management, Inc. by 67.8%, now holding 3,286 shares valued at approximately $761,000 after acquiring an additional 1,328 shares.
• Institutional investors collectively own 80.40% of Waste Management's stock, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• The company posted a quarterly EPS of $1.92, beating analyst expectations, with a revenue of $6.43 billion, marking a 19% increase year-over-year.

Davis R M Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 67.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,286 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,328 shares during the period. Davis R M Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $761,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 51.1% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,384,000 after buying an additional 2,320 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its position in Waste Management by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 124,848 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,193,000 after buying an additional 15,974 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Waste Management by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 260,910 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $52,649,000 after buying an additional 13,755 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in Waste Management by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 8,315 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,678,000 after buying an additional 1,126 shares during the period. Finally, Bryce Point Capital LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $469,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was 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 directly owned 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. The trade was a 40.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total value 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. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Trading Down 1.5%

Waste Management stock opened at $228.93 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $231.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $227.97. The company has a market cap of $92.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.64. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $199.69 and a 52-week high of $242.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51.

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

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Waste Management's payout ratio is 48.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on WM shares. HSBC raised Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $210.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Waste Management from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. CIBC lifted their price target on Waste Management from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Melius assumed coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Monday, June 9th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Eight 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $254.35.

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.

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