M&T Bank Corp Sells 10,480 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp reduced its stake in Waste Management by 5.4%, selling 10,480 shares and leaving 183,400 shares valued at about $40.5 million at quarter-end.
• Insiders have been active sellers, with executives (including SVP Rafael Carrasco and VP Michael Watson) among insider sales totalling 98,042 shares worth roughly $23.0 million over the last three months.
• Waste Management raised its quarterly dividend to $0.945 ($3.78 annualized, 1.6% yield); analysts maintain a consensus "Moderate Buy" with a $253.55 average price target.

M&T Bank Corp lowered its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 5.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 183,400 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 10,480 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in Waste Management were worth $40,500,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WM. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 3,853 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $851,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Clean Yield Group lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 6.7% during the third quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 801 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $177,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Mendel Money Management grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.8% in the third quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 2,903 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $641,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 0.5% in the third quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC now owns 9,644 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,130,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, Intrua Financial LLC raised its position in Waste Management by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Intrua Financial LLC now owns 2,591 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $593,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 7,352 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.50, for a total value of $1,724,044.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at $3,644,130. This trade represents a 32.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the business'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 sale, the vice president owned 44,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,674,944.26. This trade represents a 28.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 98,042 shares of company stock valued at $23,039,777 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WM shares. DZ Bank assumed coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Monday, November 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $256.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $266.00 to $265.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.55.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $238.61 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $229.82 and its 200 day moving average is $220.39. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $194.11 and a one year high of $248.13. The firm has a market cap of $96.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.61, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. Waste Management's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.70 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.945 per share. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 49.25%.

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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