Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Sold by United Asset Strategies Inc.

United Asset Strategies Inc. lessened its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 52.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 31,644 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 35,022 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $7,272,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 55.3% in the fourth quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 132 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM traded up $6.84 on Tuesday, reaching $235.82. The company had a trading volume of 662,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,222,429. The company has a market capitalization of $94.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.11, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The company has a fifty day moving average of $220.41 and a 200-day moving average of $225.46. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $194.11 and a one year high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The company had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.67 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 54.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to an “outperformer” rating and set a $244.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $255.95.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.