Waste Management, Inc. $WM Stake Boosted by Saturna Capital Corp

Saturna Capital Corp grew its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 29.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 163,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 37,082 shares during the quarter. Saturna Capital Corp’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $35,951,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. RHL Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $224.47 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $90.14 billion, a PE ratio of 32.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company’s fifty day moving average is $223.23 and its 200-day moving average is $224.71. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $194.11 and a 52 week high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 10.99%.Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 54.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WM. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $273.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $255.30.

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.