Symmetry Partners LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Symmetry Partners LLC lessened its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 69.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 969 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,201 shares during the quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $201,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 62.9% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Waste Management in the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 67.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 199 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WM traded down $1.86 during trading on Friday, hitting $213.99. The company had a trading volume of 1,267,741 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,302,040. The stock has a market cap of $85.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $209.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $208.83. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $162.34 and a one year high of $225.00.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.51 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.88%. The business’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 45.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Waste Management from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. CIBC increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.05.

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.