Sage Advisors LLC Purchases 148 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Sage Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 15.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Waste Management makes up approximately 0.2% of Sage Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Sage Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 2,350 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $474,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its holdings in Waste Management by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 124,848 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,193,000 after acquiring an additional 15,974 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,145,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 2,661 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $569,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $642,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE:WM opened at $227.80 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $91.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $212.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $211.96. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.59 and a 52-week high of $230.39.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly 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 net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 38.88%. On average, analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on WM. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Argus increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.50.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total value of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,446.72. This represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $152,868.87. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at $10,046,109.78. The trade was a 1.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,055 shares of company stock worth $3,578,340 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.