Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,111,396 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 436,565 shares during the quarter. Waste Management accounts for approximately 0.9% of Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.78% of Waste Management worth $627,847,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 44,405 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total transaction of $10,143,434.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,061 shares in the company, valued at $48,212,664.23. The trade was a 17.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 3,094 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.11, for a total value of $705,772.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 53,663 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,241,066.93. This trade represents a 5.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 79,522 shares of company stock valued at $18,084,124 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Stock Up 2.4%

Shares of NYSE:WM traded up $5.29 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $227.76. The stock had a trading volume of 1,762,569 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,659,994. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76. The firm's 50 day moving average is $228.22 and its 200-day moving average is $221.38. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.59 and a 1 year high of $239.32.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. The business had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Citigroup increased their price target on Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $243.29.

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.