TKG Advisors LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

TKG Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,348 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 146 shares during the quarter. TKG Advisors LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,167,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WM. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 65.7% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,446.72. This represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total transaction of $903,560.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 18,531 shares in the company, valued at $4,185,967.59. The trade was a 17.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,055 shares of company stock worth $3,578,340 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of Waste Management stock opened at $228.38 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $212.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $212.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The firm has a market cap of $91.66 billion, a PE ratio of 33.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.59 and a 52 week high of $230.39.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.88% and a net margin of 12.45%. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 44.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WM. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.94.

Waste Management Company 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.