Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Cuts Stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. lowered its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 26.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,470 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,933 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,718,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. General Partner Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WM has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Scotiabank upped their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $242.35.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 1,251 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.92, for a total value of $282,625.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 8,420 shares in the company, valued at $1,902,246.40. This represents a 12.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the firm'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 directly owns 8,491 shares in the company, valued at $1,995,045.36. The trade was a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 2.1 %

NYSE:WM traded up $4.75 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $233.55. The stock had a trading volume of 1,954,835 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,650,381. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $239.32. The company has a market capitalization of $93.96 billion, a PE ratio of 34.35, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $227.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $219.96.

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

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Waste Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management's payout ratio is currently 48.53%.

About Waste Management

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.