Strs Ohio Invests $37.59 Million in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Strs Ohio bought a new position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 162,349 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $37,585,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westend Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 126.9% in the first quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 69.0% in the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the first quarter worth about $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $220.54 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $227.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $229.38. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $199.69 and a 12 month high of $242.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.72, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

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

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Scotiabank upped 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.