Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock Position Raised by Portfolio Design Labs LLC

Portfolio Design Labs LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 117.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,279 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,230 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $460,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $857,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $546,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 1,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mcrae Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mcrae Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,585 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total transaction of $152,868.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at $10,046,109.78. The trade was a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 16,055 shares of company stock worth $3,578,340. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $226.78 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.35, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.48 and a 1-year high of $230.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $211.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $211.53.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.88% and a net margin of 12.45%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.50.

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.