Geode Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management increased its Waste Management stake by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 8.99 million shares worth about $1.97 billion. The fund now owns roughly 2.23% of the company.
• Waste Management reported better-than-expected earnings of $1.81 per share for the quarter, topping estimates, while revenue rose 3.5% year over year to $6.23 billion. Analysts currently expect full-year EPS of 8.15.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.945 per share, equal to an annualized payout of $3.78 and a yield of about 1.8%. Meanwhile, several analysts remain constructive, with an average price target of $255.67.

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,993,006 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 117,476 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.23% of Waste Management worth $1,972,371,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,922 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,104 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,341,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,398 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Old Port Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 16,963 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,727,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total transaction of $1,165,136.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 78,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,084,739.94. This trade represents a 5.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total transaction of $4,171,464.31. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 44,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,674,944.26. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 35,222 shares of company stock valued at $8,552,294. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

WM opened at $214.23 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $86.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.00, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.49. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $194.11 and a 1-year high of $248.13. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $225.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The company's revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $255.67.

About Waste Management

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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