Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Stock Position Raised by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 199,331 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,628 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $40,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 1.1% in the third quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $857,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,039 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% during the third quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Balboa Wealth Partners increased its holdings in Waste Management by 4.1% in the third quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 1,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE WM opened at $229.07 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.69, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.59 and a 52 week high of $230.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $213.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $212.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.88% and a net margin of 12.45%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 44.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target 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. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued 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 an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total transaction of $46,094.95. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,999,506.30. The trade was a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total transaction of $903,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 18,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,185,967.59. This trade represents a 17.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,055 shares of company stock worth $3,578,340. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

About Waste Management

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.