Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock Holdings Decreased by Clearstead Trust LLC

Clearstead Trust LLC reduced its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 24.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,968 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 4,753 shares during the quarter. Waste Management makes up approximately 0.7% of Clearstead Trust LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Clearstead Trust LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,020,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.65.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of WM stock opened at $225.06 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $220.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $215.26. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.59 and a 1 year high of $235.81.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced 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 37.93%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 48.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total value of $152,868.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,046,109.78. The trade was a 1.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total transaction of $46,094.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,999,506.30. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Company 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.