Signaturefd LLC Acquires 49 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,511 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,717,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $340,611,000. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 22.5% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 6,272,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,265,629,000 after purchasing an additional 1,151,237 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings 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 worth $366,537,000 after purchasing an additional 709,678 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 138.0% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 718,546 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $149,168,000 after buying an additional 416,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG bought a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,668,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $228.02 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.59 and a 12-month high of $235.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $221.05 and a 200 day moving average of $215.47.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. 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 presently 48.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WM shares. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. CIBC lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James increased their target price on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $236.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Management news, EVP John J. Morris sold 19,153 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.71, for a total transaction of $4,303,870.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,257 shares in the company, valued at $19,158,100.47. This trade represents a 18.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total transaction of $46,094.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,999,506.30. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company 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.