Vest Financial LLC Purchases 1,797 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Vest Financial LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 18.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,301 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,797 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,280,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Management Associates Inc boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Management Associates Inc now owns 2,140 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in Waste Management by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd now owns 67,751 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,671,000 after buying an additional 11,237 shares in the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in Waste Management by 25.6% in the fourth quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 15,829 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,194,000 after acquiring an additional 3,225 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $113,000. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 14,017 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,828,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total transaction of $903,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 18,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,185,967.59. This represents a 17.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total transaction of $46,094.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,999,506.30. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 16,055 shares of company stock worth $3,578,340. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $224.94 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.48 and a 12 month high of $230.39. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $211.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $211.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The stock has a market cap of $90.28 billion, a PE ratio of 33.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 38.88%. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 44.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WM. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.50.

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.