GWN Securities Inc. Takes $1.16 Million Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

GWN Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 5,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,155,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WM. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on WM shares. Citigroup increased their target price on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. CIBC raised their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.65.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total value of $29,135.04. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,995,045.36. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 44,405 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $10,143,434.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,212,664.23. This trade represents a 17.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of WM stock opened at $225.06 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.59 and a 1 year high of $235.81. The stock has a market cap of $90.50 billion, a PE ratio of 33.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s fifty day moving average is $220.52 and its 200-day moving average is $215.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. Equities analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.53%.

Waste Management Company Profile

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.