Signaturefd LLC Acquires 49 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,511 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,717,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $340,611,000. Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 6,272,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,265,629,000 after buying an additional 1,151,237 shares during the period. Swedbank AB grew its stake in Waste Management by 67.2% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,765,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $366,537,000 after acquiring an additional 709,678 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 138.0% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 718,546 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $149,168,000 after acquiring an additional 416,579 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,668,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of WM stock opened at $228.02 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.59 and a fifty-two week high of $235.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.69 billion, a PE ratio of 33.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $221.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $215.47.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. Equities analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 48.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on WM shares. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective 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. CIBC increased their target price on Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total transaction of $42,062.02. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,129 shares in the company, valued at $1,349,728.38. This represents a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 5,732 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.51, for a total transaction of $1,304,087.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 55,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,646,598.37. This trade represents a 9.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464. 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.