Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Holdings Raised by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 24.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,624 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,193 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $14,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WM. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Waste Management by 170.5% in 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 last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 29.7% in the 1st quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 214 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WM shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $213.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Waste Management to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com lowered Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $204.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.83.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $204.10 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $208.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $208.69. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $149.71 and a one year high of $225.00. The firm has a market cap of $81.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.82. The company had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 39.52%. The firm’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 earned $1.51 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 49.10%.

Insider Activity

In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $330,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.