Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 122,973 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 36.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 456,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 122,973 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.11% of Waste Management worth $92,197,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $315,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,009,726,000. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in Waste Management by 69.8% during the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 103,824 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $20,951,000 after buying an additional 42,684 shares during the period. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,476 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,720,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $344,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of several analyst reports. CIBC upped their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total value of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Morris sold 19,153 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.71, for a total transaction of $4,303,870.63. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,257 shares in the company, valued at $19,158,100.47. This trade represents a 18.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $229.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $235.81. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $224.25 and a 200 day moving average of $216.37. The firm has a market cap of $92.15 billion, a PE ratio of 33.70, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its 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 37.93%. On average, research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.53%.

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.