Insider Selling: Waste Management (NYSE:WM) COO Sells 7,979 Shares of Stock

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) COO John Morris sold 7,979 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.07, for a total value of $1,955,413.53. Following the sale, the chief operating officer 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Waste Management Stock Performance

NYSE WM traded down $0.45 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $245.60. The company had a trading volume of 514,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,338,039. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $194.11 and a fifty-two week high of $248.13. The firm has a market cap of $99.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.57. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $227.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $219.87.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 10.74%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.70 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.25%.

Institutional Trading of Waste Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth about $1,022,916,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 444.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,206,026 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $487,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800,728 shares during the period. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP grew its position in Waste Management by 55.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 2,897,636 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $663,037,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034,258 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 218.3% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,369,805 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $302,494,000 after purchasing an additional 939,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 163.7% in the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,400,701 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $309,317,000 after buying an additional 869,453 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $250.00 target price (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Waste Management in a report on Monday, November 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Waste Management from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.55.

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.