OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Invests $13.55 Million in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 61,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $13,551,000. Waste Management comprises 1.5% of OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $1,022,916,000. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 218.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,369,805 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $302,494,000 after purchasing an additional 939,455 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 163.7% in the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,400,701 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $309,317,000 after buying an additional 869,453 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 279.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,075,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $236,387,000 after buying an additional 792,037 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Waste Management by 3,209.2% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 681,366 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $150,466,000 after buying an additional 660,776 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE WM opened at $214.40 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The company has a market cap of $86.10 billion, a PE ratio of 31.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.45. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $194.11 and a 52 week high of $248.13. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $221.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $224.68.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 54.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Waste Management from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $255.30.

Waste Management Company 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.