Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Symmetry Partners LLC

Symmetry Partners LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,170 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 809 shares during the period. Symmetry Partners LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $676,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wesbanco Bank Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 4,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $984,000 after buying an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 29,333 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,258,000 after acquiring an additional 536 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 0.9% during the second quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 20,107 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,290,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. CGN Advisors LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 1.5% during the second quarter. CGN Advisors LLC now owns 10,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,155,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 11.8% in the second quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 2,291 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $489,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WM. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price target for the company. Raymond James upped their price objective on Waste Management from $219.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com lowered Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, CIBC decreased their price target on Waste Management from $223.00 to $213.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.83.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $330,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,324,156.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $205.79. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 470,940 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,703,319. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.07. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.71 and a fifty-two week high of $225.00. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $208.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $206.09. The company has a market cap of $82.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.74.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82. The business had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 39.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.51 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.10%.

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.