Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Sold by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management reduced its Waste Management stake by 14.8% in the second quarter, selling 28,953 shares and retaining 166,949 shares valued at approximately $37.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 80.4% of WM.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with 13 Buy ratings and seven Holds producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $258.89.
• Waste Management reported quarterly EPS of $2.02, beating estimates by $0.04, while revenue rose 4% year over year to $6.68 billion. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.945 per share, equivalent to a 1.7% yield.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 14.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 166,949 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 28,953 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $37,210,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Bey Douglas LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Bey Douglas LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,922 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,104 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,341,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% in 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 period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $263.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Waste Management from $264.00 to $263.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce cut Waste Management from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $258.89.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE WM opened at $227.74 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $248.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.03 billion, a PE ratio of 32.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.44. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $226.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $227.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.04. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.68% and a net margin of 11.11%.The firm had revenue of $6.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.92 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a dividend of $0.945 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.54%.

About Waste Management

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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