Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Tucker Asset Management LLC

Tucker Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 20.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 993 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 261 shares during the period. Tucker Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $200,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 27,280 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,663,000 after buying an additional 2,133 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its position in Waste Management by 5.2% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 34,205 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,101,000 after buying an additional 1,701 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 18.2% in the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 1,614 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in Waste Management by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 11,235 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,332,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Finally, Peterson Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 29.8% during the third quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 3,987 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $828,000 after acquiring an additional 915 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $227.80 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $224.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.51. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $235.81. The firm has a market cap of $91.60 billion, a PE ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

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%. Equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WM. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.65.

Insider Activity

In other Waste Management news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares in the company, valued at $1,995,045.36. This represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total value of $46,094.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,999,506.30. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.