DNB Asset Management AS Grows Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

DNB Asset Management AS boosted its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 153,111 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,912 shares during the period. DNB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $33,812,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Waste Management by 2.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,436,462 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,487,924,000 after acquiring an additional 774,255 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,647,146 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,972,856,000 after purchasing an additional 126,329 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,390,971 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,232,131,000 after purchasing an additional 74,528 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,064,206,000. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in Waste Management by 8.6% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 3,596,281 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $804,809,000 after buying an additional 284,733 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Performance

WM opened at $240.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.94, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a fifty day moving average of $225.57 and a 200 day moving average of $219.42. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $194.11 and a fifty-two week high of $242.58.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.39 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 1,021 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.71, for a total value of $239,638.91. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 8,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,950,205.39. The trade was a 10.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 7,352 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.50, for a total value of $1,724,044.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at $3,644,130. This trade represents a 32.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 62,820 shares of company stock worth $14,487,482 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Management News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Waste Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Broader market/industry tailwind — a report highlights long-term growth in the healthcare waste-management market, which supports demand for regulated waste services and can benefit large, diversified providers like WM. Healthcare Waste Management Market Size
• Positive Sentiment: Price momentum since earnings — investor notes point out WM has rallied since its last quarterly report, prompting discussion of whether that momentum can continue (supports short-term buying interest). Zacks: WM Up Since Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Relative performance debate — a Barchart piece notes WM has lagged the S&P 500 over the past year but reports analysts remain moderately optimistic; this frames the stock as undervalued by some and fairly valued by others. Is WM Underperforming the S&P 500?
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector peer activity — news of contract wins at smaller regional waste/cleaning firms highlights steady demand in services markets but has limited direct impact on WM’s fundamentals. Primech Contract Wins
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — WM’s CAO John A. Carroll sold 37 shares (small dollar amount) in a disclosed SEC filing; while the size is minor, insider sales can create short-term sentiment pressure. CAO Sale SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — WM’s CFO David L. Reed also sold 37 shares (disclosed in SEC filing); again small in size but contributes to the narrative of insider trimming. CFO Sale SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Institutional reduction — Aster Capital significantly trimmed its WM stake (reported reduction), a data point that can amplify selling pressure from funds rebalancing. Aster Capital Reduces Position
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation critique — analysis on Seeking Alpha calls WM a reliable dividend name but argues the stock trades at a premium, highlighting valuation as a potential restraint on further multiple expansion. Seeking Alpha: Dividend Darling, But Premium Stinks

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WM shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $263.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Robert W. Baird raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $238.00 to $242.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on Waste Management from $266.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.55.

About Waste Management

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.