Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $105.66 Million Stake in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Nomura Asset Management increased its stake in Waste Management by 9% in the fourth quarter, holding 480,892 shares worth about $105.7 million.
• Several analysts remain positive on WM, with the consensus rating at Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $255.67. Recent updates included higher price targets from JPMorgan, TD Cowen, and Wells Fargo.
• Waste Management reported Q1 earnings of $1.81 per share, topping estimates, while revenue rose 3.5% year over year. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.945 per share, payable June 18.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 9.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 480,892 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 39,908 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.12% of Waste Management worth $105,657,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Guerra Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Waste Management by 59.5% in the third quarter. Guerra Advisors Inc now owns 9,037 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,996,000 after buying an additional 3,371 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK increased its holdings in Waste Management by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 196,585 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $43,192,000 after buying an additional 3,880 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Waste Management by 19.1% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 69,287 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $15,301,000 after buying an additional 11,135 shares during the last quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. increased its holdings in Waste Management by 333.1% in the fourth quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 8,442 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,855,000 after buying an additional 6,493 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Waste Management by 11.6% in the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,881,975 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $415,597,000 after buying an additional 195,092 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $255.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total value of $4,171,464.31. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 44,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,674,944.26. This represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 121 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.27, for a total value of $29,677.67. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,293 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,279,294.11. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 35,222 shares of company stock valued at $8,552,294 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Waste Management Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of WM stock opened at $211.32 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $248.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The company has a market cap of $84.86 billion, a PE ratio of 30.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.49. The business's 50 day moving average is $224.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.04.

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

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 54.70%.

Waste Management Company 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.