The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 8,256 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. $WM

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 192,154 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,256 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $42,827,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Waste Management by 51.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,861 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $325,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Waste Management by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 272,438 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $62,339,000 after purchasing an additional 20,122 shares in the last quarter. Glenview Trust co lifted its stake in Waste Management by 5.1% in the second quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 3,338 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $764,000 after buying an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 273.7% during the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 512 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $117,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WM shares. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered shares of Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Waste Management from $240.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Waste Management from $264.00 to $263.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $252.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.89.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM opened at $213.71 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $227.48 and a 200-day moving average of $226.58. The company has a market cap of $85.42 billion, a PE ratio of 30.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.42. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $194.11 and a one year high of $248.13.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.04. Waste Management had a return on equity of 31.68% and a net margin of 11.11%.The business had revenue of $6.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.92 earnings per share. Waste Management’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 53.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, CAO John Carroll sold 1,365 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.90, for a total transaction of $300,163.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 3,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $771,629.10. This trade represents a 28.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Waste Management Profile

WM, Inc, formerly known as Waste Management, Inc, is an environmental services company that provides waste collection, transfer, disposal and recycling services. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers, helping manage everyday refuse as well as certain specialized waste streams.

Its operations include curbside and commercial waste collection, transfer stations, recycling facilities, landfills and waste-related energy services. WM also develops renewable natural gas and electricity projects that capture landfill gas for use as an energy source.