Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,517 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 245 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,177,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 83.9% during the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,770 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $838,000 after acquiring an additional 2,176 shares during the period. Sachetta LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,673,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 41.5% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,969 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $353,000 after buying an additional 577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 343,694 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $61,556,000 after buying an additional 9,683 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at $9,711,680. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WM. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Waste Management from $229.00 to $224.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Waste Management from $215.00 to $213.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Waste Management from $240.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Management currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.83.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $204.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $208.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $208.70. The company has a market capitalization of $82.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.48, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.71 and a fifty-two week high of $225.00.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.82. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.52% and a net margin of 12.13%. The business had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.51 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.10%.

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.