Meeder Asset Management Inc. Boosts Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 321.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 88,792 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 67,732 shares during the quarter. Waste Management makes up 1.2% of Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $18,433,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Chesapeake Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 4.4% in the third quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 1,539 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC increased its stake in Waste Management by 3.9% in the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 7,463 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,549,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its stake in Waste Management by 9.1% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 63,403 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,163,000 after purchasing an additional 5,296 shares during the last quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. increased its stake in Waste Management by 1.3% in the third quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. now owns 74,816 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,532,000 after purchasing an additional 945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Waste Management by 3.4% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,189 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,492,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at $834,946.25. The trade was a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WM. William Blair started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. CIBC lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $226.11.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $218.31 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $211.80 and its 200-day moving average is $209.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $168.73 and a 1 year high of $226.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.62 billion, a PE ratio of 33.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.88%. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Waste Management’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.87%.

About Waste Management

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.