Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $4.34 Million Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System decreased its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 6.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,524 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,411 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $4,343,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Swedbank AB grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 67.2% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,765,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $366,537,000 after purchasing an additional 709,678 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 7.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,561 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,570,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 27.7% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 62,629 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,002,000 after acquiring an additional 13,604 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 63,403 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,163,000 after acquiring an additional 5,296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 7,463 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,549,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total transaction of $29,135.04. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,995,045.36. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total transaction of $42,062.02. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,349,728.38. This represents a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.7 %

Waste Management stock opened at $227.37 on Thursday. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $235.81. The stock has a market cap of $91.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $221.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $215.65. 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 (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WM. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. CIBC increased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.65.

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.