Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 4,736 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 9.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,736 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $12,141,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Sachetta LLC bought a new position in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management during the first quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,324,156.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,711,680. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $212.04 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $209.81 and its 200-day moving average is $208.51. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $149.71 and a 1 year high of $225.00. The company has a market capitalization of $85.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82. The firm had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.52% and a net margin of 12.13%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.51 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WM shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $229.00 to $224.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $204.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $213.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price target for the company. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.83.

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.