Secure Asset Management LLC Acquires 2,040 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Secure Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 114.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,827 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,040 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $772,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Waste Management by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,240,429 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $854,446,000 after buying an additional 280,455 shares in the last quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 278,185 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $56,135,000 after acquiring an additional 2,127 shares during the last quarter. Trium Capital LLP increased its holdings in Waste Management by 33.6% during the 3rd quarter. Trium Capital LLP now owns 12,031 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,498,000 after purchasing an additional 3,029 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its position in Waste Management by 77.4% in the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 12,298 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,553,000 after purchasing an additional 5,367 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Management by 6.2% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 480,534 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $99,759,000 after purchasing an additional 28,266 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WM. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Waste Management from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $220.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Waste Management from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Ten 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.72.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total value of $66,795.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $834,946.25. This represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $209.43 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $183.00 and a 12-month high of $230.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $212.81 and a 200-day moving average of $211.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.77.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The firm had revenue of $5.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 45.87%.

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.