John A. Carroll Sells 1,251 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) CAO John A. Carroll sold 1,251 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.92, for a total transaction of $282,625.92. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 8,420 shares in the company, valued at $1,902,246.40. The trade was a 12.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM traded up $0.95 during trading on Monday, hitting $230.50. 606,494 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,521,475. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $92.69 billion, a PE ratio of 33.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.59 and a 52-week high of $235.81. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $218.22 and a 200 day moving average of $214.81.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.53%.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WM. Activest Wealth Management raised its stake 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 worth $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. General Partner Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WM. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.65.

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.