Pacific Point Advisors LLC Buys New Shares in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 5,983 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,315,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WM. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 51.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,384,000 after buying an additional 2,320 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the first quarter valued at about $325,000. StoneX Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 18.3% during the 2nd quarter. StoneX Group Inc. now owns 2,548 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $583,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. Ossiam boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 36.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ossiam now owns 11,894 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,722,000 after acquiring an additional 3,149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, L2 Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 1,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $412,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, COO John J. Morris sold 7,979 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.07, for a total value of $1,955,413.53. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 98,656 shares in the company, valued at $24,177,625.92. The trade was a 7.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 30,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.36, for a total transaction of $7,000,640.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 225,793 shares in the company, valued at $52,013,675.48. The trade was a 11.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 98,042 shares of company stock valued at $23,039,777. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $266.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $254.59.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE:WM opened at $233.08 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $93.91 billion, a PE ratio of 34.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.54. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $248.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $232.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.60.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. Waste Management’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.42%.

Waste Management 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.