Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd Makes New Investment in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd opened a new position in Waste Management, buying 63,470 shares valued at about $13.9 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with 80.40% of WM shares held by institutions and hedge funds; several big investors, including Vanguard and State Street, also increased their stakes.
• Analysts are still broadly constructive on the stock: Waste Management reported Q1 EPS of $1.81, beat estimates, and maintains a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $255.30.

Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 63,470 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $13,945,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,990,067 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $8,566,508,000 after purchasing an additional 553,605 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,390,748 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,820,921,000 after purchasing an additional 281,456 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,993,006 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,972,371,000 after purchasing an additional 117,476 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 5.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,668,221 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,250,613,000 after purchasing an additional 277,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $1,022,916,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Waste Management

Here are the key news stories impacting Waste Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Commentary today reiterated that WM’s irreplaceable physical network supports predictable, inflation-protected cash flow, reinforcing the stock’s appeal as a long-term “forever” holding. Why This Once-in-a-Decade Selloff Makes One Waste Management Company a Forever Stock
• Positive Sentiment: WM also reinforced its brand and operational discipline by updating its Recycle Right® guidance to warn customers not to place batteries in recycling or trash bins, a move that highlights safety focus and could help reduce facility fire risk. WM Updates Recycle Right® Rules: No Batteries in Recycling or Trash
• Neutral Sentiment: Several items referenced capital-markets activity around Waste Management entities, including debt issuance in Canada, which may support financing flexibility but does not appear to be a major stock-moving catalyst for WM’s core U.S. operations. Waste Management eyes selling $750 million in bonds
• Negative Sentiment: WM shares have recently softened amid a broader selloff in industrials and a market session where the stock fell while the wider market rose, suggesting some near-term profit-taking or valuation pressure. Waste Management (WM) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $255.30.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE WM opened at $218.73 on Wednesday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $222.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.79. The company has a market cap of $87.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.65, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.45. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $248.13.

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

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.70%.

Waste Management Profile

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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