WoodTrust Financial Corp Raises Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

WoodTrust Financial Corp increased its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 16.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,329 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 5,666 shares during the quarter. Waste Management accounts for approximately 1.3% of WoodTrust Financial Corp's holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. WoodTrust Financial Corp's holdings in Waste Management were worth $9,105,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WM. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $1,009,726,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 worth $442,038,000 after buying an additional 1,902,081 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $340,611,000. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in shares of 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 worth $334,716,000 after buying an additional 1,184,905 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 6,272,009 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,265,629,000 after buying an additional 1,151,237 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

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

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $234.75 on Tuesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $196.59 and a one year high of $242.58. The company's 50-day moving average is $233.12 and its 200 day moving average is $224.13. The company has a market capitalization of $94.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.67% and a return on equity of 35.67%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.75 EPS. Waste Management's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Monday, June 9th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $248.00.

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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