Mirova US LLC Sells 55,752 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Mirova US LLC lowered its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,462,037 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 55,752 shares during the quarter. Waste Management makes up 3.3% of Mirova US LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Mirova US LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $322,862,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 51.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. Sprott Inc. purchased a new position in Waste Management in the first quarter worth about $325,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 16.4% during the 1st quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 3,677 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co. increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 1,499 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 13,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,079,000 after buying an additional 815 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,373,112.40. This represents a 8.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM opened at $222.41 on Tuesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $242.58. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $211.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $220.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.60 billion, a PE ratio of 35.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.84.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The business services provider reported $1.98 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $6.51 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 10.35%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.96 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 51.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on WM shares. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $264.00 to $254.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, November 14th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $238.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $248.95.

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.