Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Bought by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 300,788 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,036 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $66,437,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WM. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 101.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new position in Waste Management during the second quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM opened at $234.07 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $222.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $219.21. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $194.11 and a 12-month high of $242.58. The firm has a market cap of $94.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.94, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released 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). The firm had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 689 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.32, for a total value of $151,111.48. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 56,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,316,791.88. This trade represents a 1.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 1,021 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.71, for a total value of $239,638.91. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,950,205.39. The trade was a 10.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 44,580 shares of company stock worth $10,198,938 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $256.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Truist Financial set a $260.00 price objective on Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $223.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Management has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.55.

Waste Management Company 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.