Norges Bank Takes Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Norges Bank disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Waste Management, buying 4,655,755 shares valued at about $1.02 billion, or 1.16% of the company.
• Waste Management shares were down 1.4% and opened at $211.32, below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages. The company has a market cap of $84.86 billion and trades with a beta of 0.49.
• The company recently beat quarterly profit expectations with $1.81 EPS versus $1.75 expected, and it announced a quarterly dividend of $0.945 per share, payable June 18.

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 4,655,755 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,022,916,000. Norges Bank owned 1.16% of Waste Management as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 101.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of WM opened at $211.32 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $224.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.04. The stock has a market cap of $84.86 billion, a PE ratio of 30.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.49. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $248.13. 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 (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 617 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.13, for a total value of $150,628.21. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,607 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,345,356.91. The trade was a 6.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO John J. Morris sold 7,979 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.07, for a total value of $1,955,413.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 98,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,177,625.92. This trade represents a 7.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 35,222 shares of company stock worth $8,552,294. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on WM. Wolfe Research began coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $255.67.

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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