Mitchell Capital Management Co. Decreases Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Mitchell Capital Management Co. trimmed its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,378 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 723 shares during the period. Mitchell Capital Management Co.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $4,516,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. General Partner Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 65.7% during the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 5,732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.51, for a total value of $1,304,087.32. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 55,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,646,598.37. The trade was a 9.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total value of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 66,192 shares of company stock valued at $15,025,861. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE WM opened at $232.83 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $233.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.63 billion, a PE ratio of 34.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $215.71 and its 200 day moving average is $213.96.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. Research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 48.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. CIBC lifted their price target on Waste Management from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.94.

Waste Management Company 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.