Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Purchases 6,300 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,950 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,300 shares during the period. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $17,214,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 101.5% in the third 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. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. DZ Bank initiated coverage on Waste Management in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $238.00 to $242.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Waste Management from $266.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 690 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.01, for a total transaction of $151,116.90. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 22,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,013,576.92. The trade was a 2.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 5,706 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.87, for a total value of $1,317,344.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 220,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,811,485.69. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 44,580 shares of company stock worth $10,198,938 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Trading Down 1.5%

NYSE WM opened at $231.18 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $242.58. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $221.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $219.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The company has a market capitalization of $93.24 billion, a PE ratio of 34.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.58.

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

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.