Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Decreases Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co trimmed its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 30.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 44,637 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 19,615 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $10,334,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at about $1,826,000. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 4.0% in the first quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,167 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $965,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 4.6% in the first quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 22,706 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,257,000 after acquiring an additional 995 shares in the last quarter. Voleon Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 28.1% in the first quarter. Voleon Capital Management LP now owns 34,480 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,982,000 after acquiring an additional 7,569 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 7.0% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 13,775 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,189,000 after acquiring an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM opened at $220.08 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $227.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $229.66. The company has a market capitalization of $88.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.86. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $199.69 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 34.37% and a net margin of 11.36%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. Waste Management has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 48.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank raised their price target on Waste Management from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. National Bank Financial upgraded Waste Management to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 26th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Waste Management from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $229.00 price target on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $254.35.

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.