Wesbanco Bank Inc. Has $2.72 Million Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Wesbanco Bank Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 17.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 12,382 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,603 shares during the quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 101.5% during 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 in the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $255.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO John J. Morris sold 7,979 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.07, for a total transaction of $1,955,413.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 98,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,177,625.92. This trade represents a 7.48% 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. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 12,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total transaction of $2,847,055.12. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 6,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,406,483.52. The trade was a 66.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 91,959 shares of company stock valued at $21,698,005. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $215.18 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $86.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.14, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $231.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $222.91. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $194.11 and a one year high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.945 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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 1.8%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 54.70%.

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.