Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Bought by Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 0.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,495 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $2,024,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 170.5% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 119 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Sachetta LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.3 %

WM opened at $210.20 on Thursday. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $149.71 and a one year high of $214.54. The company has a market cap of $84.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.40, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $208.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $200.47.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.23. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. The company had revenue of $5.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 49.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total value of $859,610.24. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on WM. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James increased their target price on Waste Management from $219.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Waste Management from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Waste Management from $207.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $217.61.

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.