KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Boosts Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS increased its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 18.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 236,153 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 36,900 shares during the quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $51,885,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,436,462 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,487,924,000 after buying an additional 774,255 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,668,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,250,613,000 after buying an additional 277,250 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Waste Management by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,954,519 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $873,276,000 after buying an additional 11,688 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Waste Management by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,530,900 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $781,494,000 after buying an additional 236,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sustainable Growth Advisers LP boosted its stake in Waste Management by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 3,262,148 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $720,380,000 after buying an additional 364,512 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $223.25 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $89.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.32, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $194.11 and a one year high of $248.13. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $232.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $222.20.

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

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total transaction of $1,165,136.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 78,918 shares in the company, valued at $19,084,739.94. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 121 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.27, for a total value of $29,677.67. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 9,293 shares in the company, valued at $2,279,294.11. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on WM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $255.64.

Waste Management Profile

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.