Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 7,513 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 13.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 64,977 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,513 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $14,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 101.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new position in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management in the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the third quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC boosted its position in Waste Management by 47.0% during the 3rd quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Down 0.2%

WM stock traded down $0.47 on Friday, hitting $238.14. 483,736 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,355,943. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $229.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $220.29. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $194.11 and a 12-month high of $248.13. The stock has a market cap of $96.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). Waste Management had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 10.74%.The business had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.70 EPS. Waste Management’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. This is a boost 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 yield of 1.6%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on WM shares. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.55.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total transaction of $1,165,136.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 78,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,084,739.94. This represents a 5.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO John J. Morris sold 4,211 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.38, for a total transaction of $1,024,873.18. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 99,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,320,720.02. The trade was a 4.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.