Waste Management, Inc. $WM Shares Sold by Alta Capital Management LLC

Alta Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 122,106 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 7,964 shares during the quarter. Waste Management accounts for approximately 1.8% of Alta Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Alta Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $26,828,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WM. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 218.3% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,369,805 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $302,494,000 after acquiring an additional 939,455 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 163.7% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,400,701 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $309,317,000 after acquiring an additional 869,453 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,436,462 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,487,924,000 after acquiring an additional 774,255 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 3,209.2% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 681,366 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $150,466,000 after acquiring an additional 660,776 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 247.5% during the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 868,780 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $198,799,000 after acquiring an additional 618,792 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.27, for a total transaction of $29,677.67. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,279,294.11. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO John J. Morris sold 4,211 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.38, for a total transaction of $1,024,873.18. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 99,929 shares in the company, valued at $24,320,720.02. The trade was a 4.04% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 35,296 shares of company stock worth $8,569,283 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on WM. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $263.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $255.67.

Waste Management Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $222.78 on Tuesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $194.11 and a 12-month high of $248.13. The company has a market capitalization of $89.46 billion, a PE ratio of 32.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $228.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $223.12.

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

Waste Management Announces Dividend

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

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.