First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 2,479 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 4.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 59,517 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 2,479 shares during the period. Waste Management makes up 3.0% of First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $13,779,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $1,009,726,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 26,095.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,909,370 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $442,038,000 after acquiring an additional 1,902,081 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $340,611,000. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 250.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,658,733 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $334,716,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184,905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 6,272,009 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,265,629,000 after buying an additional 1,151,237 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WM. CIBC boosted their price target on Waste Management from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Waste Management from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Melius assumed coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Monday, June 9th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Melius Research upgraded shares of Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $251.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 83,934 shares in the company, valued at $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were 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 approximately $3,917,311.02. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE WM traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $228.92. 1,752,232 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,620,441. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.59 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company's fifty day moving average is $233.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.52. The stock has a market cap of $92.12 billion, a PE ratio of 34.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a return on equity of 35.67% and a net margin of 11.67%. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.75 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.