Groupama Asset Managment Trims Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Groupama Asset Management significantly reduced its stake in Waste Management, Inc. by 62.8%, selling 12,549 shares during the 1st quarter and holding a total of 7,435 shares valued at approximately $1.7 million.
• Many institutional investors, including Westend Capital Management LLC and Adalta Capital Management LLC, have recently increased their holdings in Waste Management, with institutional ownership now at 80.40% of the stock.
• Waste Management's stock received positive adjustments from analysts, with Scotiabank raising its price target from $265 to $275, reflecting a strong sentiment towards the company's performance and growth outlook.

Groupama Asset Managment trimmed its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 62.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,435 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 12,549 shares during the quarter. Groupama Asset Managment's holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,695,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,866 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $781,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 7,534 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 11,655 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,698,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,533 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Formidable Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 2,317 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $536,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 83,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,922,574.24. This represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 16,542 shares in the company, valued at $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% 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 Performance

WM traded down $2.6670 during trading on Friday, hitting $226.9430. 1,331,593 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,859,571. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.67, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $229.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $229.77. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $199.69 and a 1-year high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its 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. Waste Management had a return on equity of 34.37% and a net margin of 11.36%.The business had revenue of $6.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Waste Management has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. HSBC upgraded Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $210.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Waste Management from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. National Bank Financial upgraded Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 26th. CIBC boosted their target price on Waste Management from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $254.35.

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.