Johnson Varkey Sells 124 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,045.36. The trade was a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Johnson Varkey also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, January 31st, Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of Waste Management stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE WM opened at $230.55 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $217.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $214.49. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $235.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.90, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. CIBC upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.65.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,866 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $781,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 7,534 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 1.1% in the third quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $857,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 6,768 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 3.9% in the third quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Company 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.