Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Purchased by Terra Alpha Investments LLC

Terra Alpha Investments LLC grew its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 6.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,226 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,266 shares during the quarter. Waste Management accounts for approximately 5.6% of Terra Alpha Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Terra Alpha Investments LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $5,146,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 5,605 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,298,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Waste Management by 15.6% during the first quarter. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 16,197 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,750,000 after purchasing an additional 2,180 shares during the last quarter. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp acquired a new position in Waste Management in the first quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the first quarter valued at approximately $292,000. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the first quarter worth approximately $1,344,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total transaction of $13,740,295.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,917,311.02. This represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. National Bank Financial raised Waste Management to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $210.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $248.00.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $233.94 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $231.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $223.55. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.59 and a 52 week high of $242.58. The company has a market cap of $94.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.40, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.75 earnings per share. Waste Management’s revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.77%.

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.