Clare Market Investments LLC Takes Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Clare Market Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 10,245 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,067,000. Waste Management accounts for approximately 0.5% of Clare Market Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WM. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $340,611,000. Swedbank AB raised 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 acquiring an additional 709,678 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 5,120,772 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,063,072,000 after acquiring an additional 520,096 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Waste Management by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,801,842 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $374,062,000 after buying an additional 437,613 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in 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 worth $149,168,000 after buying an additional 416,579 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on WM. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued 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 an average price target of $236.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Donald J. Smith sold 191 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.22, for a total value of $42,062.02. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 6,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,349,728.38. The trade was a 3.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.96, for a total value of $29,135.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,045.36. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 75,173 shares of company stock valued at $17,075,967 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

NYSE:WM opened at $229.51 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $218.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $214.81. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.59 and a 1-year high of $235.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.29 billion, a PE ratio of 33.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. This is a boost 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%.

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.