Waste Management, Inc. $WM Stake Boosted by Rathbones Group PLC

Key Points

• Rathbones Group PLC increased its stake in Waste Management by 12.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 463,274 shares valued at about $101.8 million.
• Waste Management reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings of $1.81 per share, beating estimates, while revenue came in at $6.23 billion and rose 3.5% from a year earlier.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.945 per share, equal to $3.78 annually and a yield of about 1.7%.

Rathbones Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 12.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 463,274 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 52,156 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC owned approximately 0.11% of Waste Management worth $101,786,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. grew 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 purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,398 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $527,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Old Port Advisors grew its holdings in Waste Management by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 16,963 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,727,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, 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 completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO John J. Morris sold 4,211 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.38, for a total value of $1,024,873.18. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 99,929 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,320,720.02. This trade represents a 4.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 35,296 shares of company stock valued at $8,569,283. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Scotiabank reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One 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 company. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $255.67.

Waste Management Stock Performance

WM opened at $219.37 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $88.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $194.11 and a 1-year high of $248.13. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $227.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $223.42.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is 54.70%.

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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