Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Purchases 15,504 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 346,912 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 15,504 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 0.09% of Waste Management worth $76,609,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Fiduciary Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 22.7% during the third quarter. Fiduciary Family Office LLC now owns 4,001 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $884,000 after acquiring an additional 739 shares during the period. Stenger Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Stenger Family Office LLC now owns 9,588 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 1,688 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 18,535 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,093,000 after purchasing an additional 554 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 194,789 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,015,000 after buying an additional 7,522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 1.1% during the third quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 15,746 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,477,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on WM shares. Barclays lowered their price objective 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. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, National Bankshares cut their price target on Waste Management from $250.00 to $243.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $250.41.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total transaction of $299,542.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,373,112.40. The trade was a 8.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE:WM opened at $221.29 on Wednesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $242.58. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $216.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $219.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $89.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.59.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 27th. The business services provider reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $6.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.97%.

About Waste Management

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.