United Services Automobile Association Makes New Investment in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association has invested approximately $1,826,000 in Waste Management, acquiring 8,010 shares in the first quarter.
• JPMorgan Chase upgraded Waste Management's stock rating from "neutral" to "overweight," raising its price target from $225.00 to $277.00.
• The company reported a quarterly revenue of $6.43 billion, surpassing analysts' expectations, with earnings per share of $1.92 for the quarter.

United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 8,010 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,826,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Waste Management by 51.1% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 41.7% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 789 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 283,500 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $65,633,000 after purchasing an additional 7,751 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.2% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 592,229 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $137,108,000 after buying an additional 24,023 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 13.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,247 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,909,000 after buying an additional 958 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Melius Research upgraded shares of Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Melius began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Monday, June 9th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $254.35.

Waste Management Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $220.08 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $199.69 and a 52-week high of $242.58. The company has a 50 day moving average of $227.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $229.66. The company has a market capitalization of $88.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.64.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.03. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.36% and a return on equity of 34.37%. The business had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.82 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Waste Management has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Waste Management's payout ratio is presently 48.96%.

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.

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