Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Acquired by Czech National Bank

Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 97,731 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,606 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $21,472,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 101.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group raised Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” 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 eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $254.59.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 12,194 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total value of $2,847,055.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 6,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,406,483.52. The trade was a 66.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.27, for a total transaction of $29,677.67. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,293 shares in the company, valued at $2,279,294.11. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $226.35 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $194.11 and a 12-month high of $248.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $91.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $231.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $220.74.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.70 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.945 per share. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 56.42%.

Waste Management Profile

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.