Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock Holdings Decreased by Janus Henderson Group PLC

Janus Henderson Group PLC decreased its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 62.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 93,914 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 157,441 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $18,947,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. KKM Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. KKM Financial LLC now owns 14,340 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,894,000 after buying an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 3,629 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $732,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 72.6% in the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 4,481 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $904,000 after purchasing an additional 1,885 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,650,000. Finally, Ethic Inc. grew its position in Waste Management by 21.7% during the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 22,174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,475,000 after purchasing an additional 3,954 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, EVP John J. Morris sold 19,153 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.71, for a total transaction of $4,303,870.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,257 shares in the company, valued at $19,158,100.47. This trade represents a 18.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 1,251 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.92, for a total value of $282,625.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 8,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,902,246.40. This represents a 12.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 79,522 shares of company stock worth $18,084,124. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $227.76 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $91.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.49, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.67. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.59 and a 1 year high of $239.32. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $228.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $221.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. The business had revenue of $6.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.75 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Raymond James raised their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn raised Waste Management to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.29.

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.