Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Sold by Panagora Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Panagora Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in Waste Management by 49.0%, selling 11,372 shares and ending the quarter with 11,847 shares valued at $2.74 million.
• Analysts are bullish on Waste Management, with Melius Research upgrading the stock to a "strong-buy" and various firms setting price targets between $263.00 and $277.00.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.825 per share, providing stockholders with a dividend yield of 1.5% and a payout ratio of 48.96%.

Panagora Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 49.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,847 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 11,372 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,743,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Westend Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 126.9% in the 1st quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 69.0% in the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Adalta Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on WM. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, CIBC upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $254.35.

Waste Management Trading Down 2.2%

WM traded down $4.87 on Friday, reaching $220.08. 2,110,690 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,680,656. The company's 50 day moving average is $227.85 and its 200-day moving average is $229.65. The company has a market cap of $88.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.65, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.64. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $199.69 and a twelve month high of $242.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.03. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.36% and a return on equity of 34.37%. The firm had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The company's revenue was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. Waste Management has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is 48.96%.

Waste Management Company Profile

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.