Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC Has $1.59 Million Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 43.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,881 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 5,983 shares during the quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,590,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Activest Wealth Management increased its holdings in Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake in Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM opened at $213.46 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The company has a market cap of $85.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $212.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $211.28. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $184.72 and a 12-month high of $230.39.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.51 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.88%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total value of $66,795.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $834,946.25. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WM shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. CIBC upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Argus raised their price objective on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.39.

Waste Management Profile

Waste Management, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.