DAVENPORT & Co LLC Acquires 672 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,003 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 672 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $6,861,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. General Partner Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. increased its position in Waste Management by 51.8% during the 3rd quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 211 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total value of $152,868.87. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,046,109.78. The trade was a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,349,728.38. The trade was a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,653 shares of company stock valued at $364,287 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $223.89 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $212.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $211.24. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.20 and a 12 month high of $230.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.92, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

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

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group raised their price target on Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Ten 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 company. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.50.

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.