Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC

Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 9,481 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 859 shares during the period. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,913,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total value of $66,795.70. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at $834,946.25. The trade was a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Argus lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $220.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $229.72.

Waste Management Stock Performance

NYSE WM opened at $209.43 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $212.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $211.28. The company has a market capitalization of $84.06 billion, a PE ratio of 32.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.77. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $183.00 and a 1 year high of $230.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

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

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.87%.

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.