Quarry LP Purchases 916 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 218.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,335 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 916 shares during the quarter. Quarry LP’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $269,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WM. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in Waste Management by 892.9% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. General Partner Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE WM opened at $228.28 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $91.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $196.59 and a one year high of $239.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $227.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $219.78.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 37.93%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total value of $152,868.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at $10,046,109.78. This trade represents a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Morris sold 19,153 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.71, for a total value of $4,303,870.63. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 85,257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,158,100.47. The trade was a 18.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,577 shares of company stock worth $21,662,464 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WM shares. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.28.

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.