Waste Management Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:WM)

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders acquired 10,682 call options on the company. This is an increase of 175% compared to the average daily volume of 3,882 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WM has been the subject of several recent research reports. CIBC upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $207.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Waste Management from $221.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. HSBC lowered Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $211.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.24.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $208.52 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $209.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Management has a 12-month low of $149.71 and a 12-month high of $214.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $5.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.98% and a return on equity of 38.61%. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Waste Management will post 7.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.10%.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 1,782 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.23, for a total transaction of $363,937.86. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 55,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,353,349.93. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,217,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 1,782 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.23, for a total value of $363,937.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 55,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,353,349.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 13,282 shares of company stock valued at $2,754,889. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 170.5% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 119 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Sachetta LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% 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.