HTLF Bank Makes New $570,000 Investment in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

HTLF Bank acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 3,182 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $570,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. KB Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 22nd. HSBC lowered shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, February 15th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.85.

Waste Management Stock Up 1.0 %

Waste Management stock opened at $207.12 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $83.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.71 and a 1-year high of $214.54. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $207.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $184.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.30.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.19 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 36.51%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.30 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 775 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.58, for a total value of $153,899.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,934,010.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total value of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.58, for a total transaction of $153,899.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,934,010.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,007 shares of company stock valued at $3,696,520 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Profile

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.