Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Griffin Asset Management Inc.

Griffin Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 234 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,731,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 28,912 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,407,000 after buying an additional 2,272 shares in the last quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Birch Hill Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 13,927.7% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 504,296 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $90,319,000 after buying an additional 500,701 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Waste Management by 93.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 46,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,348,000 after acquiring an additional 22,455 shares during the period. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM traded up $0.67 on Friday, reaching $213.34. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,908,229 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,972,412. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $149.71 and a 52-week high of $214.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $208.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $199.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.92, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.74.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.23. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.31 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 49.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on WM shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Waste Management from $214.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. CIBC lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $207.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Waste Management from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Waste Management from $207.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $217.61.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,324,156.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% 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.