Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Purchased by Sunbelt Securities Inc.

Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 8.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 754 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $161,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sachetta LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,324,156.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WM shares. 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. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Waste Management from $207.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Eleven equities 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $217.61.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $213.34 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $208.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $199.69. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.71 and a fifty-two week high of $214.54. The company has a market cap of $85.57 billion, a PE ratio of 34.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.74.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion during 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%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.31 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Waste Management Company Profile

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.