Bokf Na Reduces Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Bokf Na lowered its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 1.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 31,179 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 376 shares during the period. Bokf Na’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $6,638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 4,799,687 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $859,624,000 after acquiring an additional 16,213 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter worth $784,486,000. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 44.6% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,226,869 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $900,957,000 after buying an additional 1,303,466 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,997,367 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $357,729,000 after buying an additional 38,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,931,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $345,851,000 after buying an additional 17,254 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM traded down $2.96 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $196.96. 2,500,282 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,486,250. The company has a market capitalization of $79.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.24, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $149.71 and a 1 year high of $225.00. The company’s 50-day moving average is $209.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $204.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.82. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 39.52%. The company had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 49.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Waste Management from $240.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Raymond James increased their target price on Waste Management from $219.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $215.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $330,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at $9,711,680. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.