Berkshire Bank Increases Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Berkshire Bank raised its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 23.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,996 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 575 shares during the quarter. Berkshire Bank’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $520,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 534.5% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,344 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 2,817 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in Waste Management by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 53,067 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,411,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Waste Management by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 358,624 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $56,842,000 after acquiring an additional 2,309 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Waste Management by 83.8% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 680 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $108,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 44.8% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 33,030 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,234,000 after acquiring an additional 10,212 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Management news, Director Bruce E. Chinn sold 172 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.44, for a total value of $27,423.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $131,059.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director John C. Pope sold 198 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.40, for a total transaction of $33,343.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,455,154.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Bruce E. Chinn sold 172 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.44, for a total transaction of $27,423.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $131,059.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM stock opened at $159.82 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $161.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $162.47. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $148.31 and a one year high of $173.71. The company has a market capitalization of $64.74 billion, a PE ratio of 28.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The business services provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $5.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.23 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 33.81% and a net margin of 11.42%. Waste Management’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 8th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 7th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James decreased their target price on Waste Management from $185.00 to $179.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Waste Management from $204.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $167.00 to $166.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. HSBC started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $192.00 target price for the company. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.25.

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.