Voya Investment Management LLC Boosts Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Voya Investment Management LLC raised its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,038,142 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 189,210 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC owned about 0.26% of Waste Management worth $229,253,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Waste Management by 51.1% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. Sprott Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the first quarter valued at approximately $325,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 17.3% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 85,184 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,721,000 after purchasing an additional 12,585 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,863,000. Finally, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its holdings in Waste Management by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 13,637 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,155,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE WM opened at $218.25 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $87.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.58. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $242.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50-day moving average of $211.31 and a 200-day moving average of $221.41.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The business services provider reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.03). Waste Management had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 10.35%.The company had revenue of $6.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. Waste Management’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.97%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total transaction of $299,542.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at $3,373,112.40. This represents a 8.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target on Waste Management from $271.00 to $266.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. National Bankshares cut their target price on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $243.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $252.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, DZ Bank assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $248.95.

Waste Management 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.