Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Sold by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,981 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 769 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $4,114,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Westend Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 126.9% in the 1st quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 69.0% in the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $272.00 to $271.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $252.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $254.32.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $217.56 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $223.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $228.03. The company has a market cap of $87.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.28, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.64. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $199.69 and a 12 month high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.36% and a return on equity of 34.37%. The company’s revenue was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. Waste Management has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 48.96%.

Waste Management 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.