Waste Management, Inc. $WM Position Increased by Nordea Investment Management AB

Key Points

• Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Waste Management by 7.2% in Q4 to 3,530,900 shares (about $781.5 million), making WM the fund's 28th largest holding.
• Waste Management raised its quarterly dividend to $0.945 (annualized $3.78) from $0.83, implying a 1.6% yield with an ex-dividend date of March 13.
• Q4 results slightly missed expectations (EPS $1.93 vs. $1.95; revenue $6.31B vs. $6.39B) though revenue rose 7.1% year-over-year, and analysts retain a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with a $254.59 price target.

Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,530,900 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 236,439 shares during the period. Waste Management accounts for approximately 0.7% of Nordea Investment Management AB's portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Nordea Investment Management AB owned about 0.88% of Waste Management worth $781,494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Value Partners Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 51.9% in the 4th quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 2,637 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $579,000 after buying an additional 901 shares in the last quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,386 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $524,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC now owns 2,713 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $596,000 after acquiring an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 202.5% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,913 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $640,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IAM Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. IAM Advisory LLC now owns 11,326 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,488,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on WM. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $256.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Waste Management from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $254.59.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM opened at $231.18 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $93.24 billion, a PE ratio of 34.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $194.11 and a one year high of $248.13. The company's fifty day moving average price is $231.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $220.65.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The firm's revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.70 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.42%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total value of $1,165,136.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 78,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,084,739.94. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total value of $4,171,464.31. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 44,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,674,944.26. This trade represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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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