Tredje AP fonden Buys 45,163 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• Tredje AP fonden boosted its stake in Waste Management by 18% in the fourth quarter, buying 45,163 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 295,630 shares worth about $64.95 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on WM, with several firms raising price targets and the stock carrying a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $255.67.
• Waste Management reported stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.81 per share, announced a quarterly dividend of $0.945, and said insiders sold shares during the quarter.

Tredje AP fonden increased its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 18.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 295,630 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 45,163 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden owned about 0.07% of Waste Management worth $64,953,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Waste Management by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,922 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,104 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,341,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,398 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Old Port Advisors lifted its position in Waste Management by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 16,963 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,727,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on WM shares. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $255.67.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total value of $1,165,136.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 78,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,084,739.94. This trade represents a 5.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total transaction of $4,171,464.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 44,146 shares in the company, valued at $10,674,944.26. This represents a 28.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 35,296 shares of company stock worth $8,569,283. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $222.78 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $228.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $223.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.46 billion, a PE ratio of 32.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $194.11 and a 12-month high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The business's revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.70%.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc NYSE: WM is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.

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