Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 74,961 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WMFree Report) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,506,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 74,961 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $550,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Syon Capital LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 5,282 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,161,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,265,370 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $497,724,000 after buying an additional 240,546 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Inc. CA boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 42.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Inc. CA now owns 21,830 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,796,000 after buying an additional 6,500 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,508,783 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $331,495,000 after buying an additional 138,978 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valtrion Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Valtrion Capital Management LLC now owns 3,169 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $696,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO John J. Morris sold 4,211 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.38, for a total value of $1,024,873.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 99,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,320,720.02. This trade represents a 4.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 121 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.27, for a total value of $29,677.67. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,279,294.11. This trade represents a 1.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,515 shares of company stock valued at $1,099,450. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. TD Cowen increased their target price on Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Waste Management from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $255.67.

View Our Latest Analysis on WM

Waste Management Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $220.45 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $248.13. The firm has a market cap of $88.53 billion, a PE ratio of 31.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $223.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $224.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WMGet Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $0.945 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $3.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.70%.

Waste Management Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Waste Management (NYSE:WM)

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