Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Sold by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,317,555 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 82,956 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.58% of Waste Management worth $511,751,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RBO & Co. LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 3.7% in the third quarter. RBO & Co. LLC now owns 57,785 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,761,000 after purchasing an additional 2,054 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 62,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,217 shares during the period. USAdvisors Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth $200,000. Miramar Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 16.4% in the third quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 58,055 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,820,000 after purchasing an additional 8,174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Level Four Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 0.7% during the third quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,166 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,349,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Waste Management

Here are the key news stories impacting Waste Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: WM raised its quarterly dividend to $0.945 (14.5% increase), payable March 27 (record March 13), signaling strong cash generation and supporting income-focused buying. WM Announces Cash Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Large institutional positions remain a tailwind: recent filings show sizable stakes and new buys by major investors (e.g., Norges Bank noted in coverage), which can support the share price and long-term confidence. MarketBeat WM Overview
• Neutral Sentiment: Several valuation comparison pieces (MEG vs. WM) have appeared — useful context for value investors but not company-specific catalysts; these analyses may influence longer-term investor preference rather than immediate trading. MEG or WM: Which Is the Better Value Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry noise: a third?party hazardous?waste vendor’s anniversary was reported — sector color but limited direct impact on WM fundamentals. All Clean Hazardous Waste Removal Celebrates Over 12 Years
• Negative Sentiment: Material insider selling over March 2–3: VP Michael J. Watson sold ~17,251 shares (~$4.17M), SVP Tara Hemmer sold 4,818 shares (~$1.17M), and other officers filed smaller sales. Large officer disposals can create short?term supply and raise questions about timing of sales. Insider Sale SEC Filing (Michael J. Watson)
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage highlighting multiple executives “unloading” their holdings has been circulated by financial press, which can amplify negative sentiment even if sales are routine or for diversification. Top WM Executives Quietly Unload Millions

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective 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. UBS Group raised shares of Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Friday, January 9th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, DZ Bank initiated coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.55.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $243.97 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.41, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.57. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $194.11 and a 1-year high of $244.88. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $226.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $219.66.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $1.70 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.945 dividend. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 49.25%.

Insider Activity

In other Waste Management news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 12,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total value of $2,847,055.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 6,024 shares in the company, valued at $1,406,483.52. This trade represents a 66.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 7,352 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.50, for a total transaction of $1,724,044.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,644,130. This trade represents a 32.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 85,548 shares of company stock worth $19,984,913. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Company 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.