Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Has $1.10 Million Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC reduced its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,155 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 747 shares during the quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,102,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 2,369 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management increased its stake in Waste Management by 1.7% in the third quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 3,881 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $592,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Dfpg Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Dfpg Investments LLC now owns 9,297 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,660,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Ledyard National Bank grew its stake in Waste Management by 3.1% in the third quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 2,224 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Shepherd Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 2.0% during the third quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,363 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $513,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $213.15 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $200.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $179.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.30, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market cap of $85.60 billion, a PE ratio of 37.66, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $149.71 and a 1 year high of $214.54.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.21. Waste Management had a return on equity of 36.51% and a net margin of 11.28%. The business had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.30 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $188.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Erste Group Bank raised Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on Waste Management from $215.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $165.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, Director John C. Pope sold 185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.00, for a total value of $33,485.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 56,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,219,441. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Waste Management news, Director John C. Pope sold 185 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.00, for a total value of $33,485.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,219,441. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total value of $523,750.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 30,242 shares of company stock worth $5,929,355 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

About Waste Management

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.