Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Key Points

• The Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. by 0.2% during Q1, now owning approximately 1,131,900 shares valued at $262,046,000 after selling 1,800 shares.
• Institutional investors own around 80.40% of Waste Management's stock, with notable increases from firms like GAMMA Investing LLC and Capital Research Global Investors during recent quarters.
• Waste Management reported a 19.0% increase in revenue year-over-year, with a recent earnings per share of $1.92, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.89.

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 0.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,131,900 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,800 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.28% of Waste Management worth $262,046,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WM. Westend Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 69.0% during the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Adalta Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. National Bank Financial raised shares of Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $254.35.

Waste Management Price Performance

Waste Management stock traded up $1.89 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $235.11. The company had a trading volume of 1,088,435 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,562,063. The company has a market capitalization of $94.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.64. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $199.69 and a 12-month high of $242.58. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $230.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $228.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.36% and a return on equity of 34.37%. Waste Management's quarterly revenue was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.82 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.96%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total value of $159,609.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 16,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 83,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. The trade was 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 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.