Moore Capital Management LP Acquires Shares of 21,512 Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Moore Capital Management LP bought a new position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 21,512 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,341,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock traded up $1.74 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $229.76. 1,639,125 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,659,111. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50 day moving average of $228.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $221.51. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $239.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.75 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 49.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 44,405 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $10,143,434.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,061 shares of the company's stock, valued at $48,212,664.23. This represents a 17.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,995,045.36. This represents a 1.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 79,522 shares of company stock valued at $18,084,124. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on WM shares. 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. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Waste Management to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.