Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Grows Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 12.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,345 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,870 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,784,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westend Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 126.9% during the first quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC increased its stake in Waste Management by 69.0% during the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Adalta Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM traded up $0.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $225.67. 760,126 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,628,770. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.59 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65. The firm has a market cap of $90.81 billion, a PE ratio of 34.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $232.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $225.44.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.14 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 35.67% and a net margin of 11.67%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.75 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 49.77%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on WM shares. Melius Research upgraded Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, June 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded 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. HSBC upgraded Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $210.00 to $265.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $251.29.

Waste Management 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.