Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co Trims Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co lessened its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 143 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $595,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,963,527 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,061,521,000 after purchasing an additional 46,084 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 16.9% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,366,017 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $827,815,000 after purchasing an additional 776,491 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,213,330 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $794,174,000 after purchasing an additional 66,816 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $784,486,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Waste Management by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,065,843 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $619,797,000 after acquiring an additional 90,129 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock traded down $1.92 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $208.52. 1,795,202 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,671,149. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $149.71 and a 1 year high of $214.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The business has a 50-day moving average of $209.62 and a 200-day moving average of $192.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.72.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. The business had revenue of $5.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on WM. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. HSBC downgraded Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Waste Management from $207.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Waste Management from $215.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John J. Morris sold 8,889 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total transaction of $1,844,111.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 95,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,804,339.06. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Waste Management news, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 1,782 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.23, for a total value of $363,937.86. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 55,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,353,349.93. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John J. Morris sold 8,889 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total value of $1,844,111.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 95,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,804,339.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,282 shares of company stock valued at $2,754,889 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.