Hantz Financial Services Inc. Reduces Stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,091 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,691 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $6,247,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Activest Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 62.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Waste Management during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM stock opened at $228.22 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $91.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $168.73 and a 52 week high of $230.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $215.17 and its 200 day moving average is $210.69.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.88%. The company’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on WM shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $220.00 price objective on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $228.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $834,946.25. This represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.