Townsquare Capital LLC Buys 4,955 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Key Points

• Townsquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Waste Management, Inc. by 15.8% in Q1, owning 36,411 shares valued at approximately $8.43 million.
• Waste Management reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.92, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $6.43 billion, marking a 19% increase from the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.825 per share, which reflects a 1.4% yield and a payout ratio of 48.96%.

Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 15.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,411 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,955 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Waste Management were worth $8,430,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westend Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Adalta Capital Management LLC purchased 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 Trading Up 0.8%

Waste Management stock opened at $235.11 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $230.87 and a 200 day moving average of $228.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 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 company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.03. Waste Management had a return on equity of 34.37% and a net margin of 11.36%. The business had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.82 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on WM shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. HSBC raised shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $210.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Friday, April 25th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $254.35.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total value of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 83,934 shares in the company, valued at $19,922,574.24. This represents a 40.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company'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 value of $159,609.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 16,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,917,311.02. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate 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.

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