Sienna Gestion Sells 1,973 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Key Points

• Sienna Gestion has reduced its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. by 6.0%, now owning 31,011 shares valued at approximately $6.98 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Brighton Jones LLC and Golden State Wealth Management LLC, have increased their stakes in Waste Management, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• Waste Management's stock has recently received positive upgrades from analysts, with target prices increasing up to $277, reflecting a positive outlook and consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Sienna Gestion decreased its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,011 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,973 shares during the quarter. Sienna Gestion's holdings in Waste Management were worth $6,979,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 26,095.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,909,370 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $442,038,000 after acquiring an additional 1,902,081 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the first quarter valued at $333,089,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 250.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,658,733 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $334,716,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184,905 shares during the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $205,506,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 780.8% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 560,600 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $113,123,000 after acquiring an additional 496,952 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 16,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,917,311.02. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM traded up $0.65 during trading on Friday, reaching $226.80. The stock had a trading volume of 3,371,175 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,657,967. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.64. 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 1-year low of $199.69 and a 1-year high of $242.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $230.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $229.50.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.37 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 34.37% and a net margin of 11.36%. The firm's revenue was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on WM shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. CIBC boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $244.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $229.00 target price on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $254.35.

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.