CWA Asset Management Group LLC Increases Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 22.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,691 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,028 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,318,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. West Branch Capital LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 69.0% in the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 87.6% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management 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 value of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 83,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade 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 the SEC website. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total value of $159,609.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,542 shares in the company, valued at $3,917,311.02. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $233.14 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $93.82 billion, a PE ratio of 35.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $233.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.00. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $196.59 and a one year high of $242.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.67% and a return on equity of 35.67%. Waste Management’s revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.75 EPS. Research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 49.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on WM shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Waste Management to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group raised their price target on Waste Management from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Melius started coverage on Waste Management in a report on Monday, June 9th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.00.

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.