Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Sells 2,787 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC trimmed its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 1.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 251,248 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 2,787 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned 0.06% of Waste Management worth $58,167,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 69.0% in the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM opened at $234.59 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $94.40 billion, a PE ratio of 34.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.59 and a 52-week high of $242.58. The business's 50 day moving average price is $232.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $223.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. The business had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.75 earnings per share. Waste Management's revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Waste Management's payout ratio is 49.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on WM. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, June 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $248.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 16,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of Waste Management 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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