Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Reduces Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA decreased its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 380,234 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 13,356 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 0.09% of Waste Management worth $78,937,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Trium Capital LLP grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 33.6% in the third quarter. Trium Capital LLP now owns 12,031 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,498,000 after purchasing an additional 3,029 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Waste Management by 77.4% during the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 12,298 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,553,000 after buying an additional 5,367 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt increased its position in Waste Management by 417.3% during the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 3,471 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $720,000 after buying an additional 2,800 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 32.1% in the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,801,842 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $374,062,000 after acquiring an additional 437,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 67.2% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,765,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $366,537,000 after acquiring an additional 709,678 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $224.41 on Monday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $168.73 and a 12-month high of $226.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $90.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $212.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $210.10.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com upgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, William Blair began coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at $834,946.25. This represents a 7.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.