Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) VP Sells $42,062.02 in Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total value of $42,062.02. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,349,728.38. This trade represents a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM traded up $3.94 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $224.20. The company had a trading volume of 1,046,698 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,779,665. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.20 and a twelve month high of $230.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market cap of $89.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.78. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $212.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $211.24.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.88% and a net margin of 12.45%. On average, research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Argus raised their target price on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Raymond James raised their target price on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $232.89.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Management

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% 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.