Waste Management, Inc. $WM Position Trimmed by United Asset Strategies Inc.

United Asset Strategies Inc. decreased its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 52.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 31,644 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 35,022 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $7,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth $1,022,916,000. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Waste Management by 218.3% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,369,805 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $302,494,000 after purchasing an additional 939,455 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP raised its holdings in Waste Management by 163.7% during the 3rd 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. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 279.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,075,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $236,387,000 after buying an additional 792,037 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 23,051.5% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 770,945 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $17,716,000 after buying an additional 767,615 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 3.0%

NYSE WM traded up $6.84 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $235.82. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 662,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,222,429. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.70 billion, a PE ratio of 34.11, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.44. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $194.11 and a 1-year high of $248.13. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $220.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $225.46.

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

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $255.95.

Waste Management 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.