Great Diamond Partners LLC Sells 3,217 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Great Diamond Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,637 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 3,217 shares during the period. Waste Management accounts for approximately 1.0% of Great Diamond Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Great Diamond Partners LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Diversified Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 144.1% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 4,271 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $911,000 after buying an additional 2,521 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 170.5% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 119 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 10.0% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 347,361 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $74,040,000 after purchasing an additional 31,538 shares in the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 9,495 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,024,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the 1st quarter worth about $7,146,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Waste Management to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $220.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Waste Management from $215.00 to $204.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $218.89.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $219.11 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $209.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $208.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $161.60 and a twelve month high of $225.00. The company has a market capitalization of $87.93 billion, a PE ratio of 34.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.52% and a net margin of 12.13%. The company had revenue of $5.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 47.69%.

About Waste Management

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.