Stanley Laman Group Ltd. Sells 1,097 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Stanley Laman Group Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 4.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,999 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,097 shares during the period. Stanley Laman Group Ltd.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $5,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 87.6% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on WM shares. CIBC upped their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $225.00 to $277.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $248.00.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,917,311.02. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total transaction of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of WM stock traded down $1.05 on Friday, hitting $236.10. 1,414,057 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,621,764. The business has a 50-day moving average of $231.75 and a 200 day moving average of $223.77. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.59 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. The business had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.77%.

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.