Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Decreases Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank trimmed its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 12.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 252,978 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 36,587 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $55,582,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Waste Management by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 23,832 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,236,000 after purchasing an additional 1,136 shares during the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY boosted its stake in Waste Management by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 42,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,235,000 after purchasing an additional 2,933 shares during the last quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 16.5% during the fourth quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 12,462 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,869,000 after buying an additional 1,766 shares in the last quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at about $311,000. Finally, Mine & Arao Wealth Creation & Management LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. Mine & Arao Wealth Creation & Management LLC. now owns 5,029 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,105,000 after buying an additional 710 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 7,352 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.50, for a total transaction of $1,724,044.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,644,130. This trade represents a 32.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total transaction of $4,171,464.31. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 44,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,674,944.26. This trade represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

NYSE:WM opened at $224.39 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $233.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $222.17. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $194.11 and a 1-year high of $248.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.49, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.54.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). Waste Management had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 10.74%.The firm had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.70 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.14 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.945 dividend. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on Waste Management from $266.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group upgraded Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $255.64.

About Waste Management

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.