Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Boosts Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 52.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 410,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 141,078 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.10% of Waste Management worth $82,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in Waste Management by 67.2% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,765,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $366,537,000 after purchasing an additional 709,678 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its holdings in Waste Management by 7.6% in the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,741,090 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $361,450,000 after buying an additional 122,696 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the third quarter valued at about $944,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Waste Management by 10.1% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,077 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Waste Management by 217.2% in the third quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,764 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,064,000 after buying an additional 10,109 shares in the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM opened at $229.51 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $218.22 and a 200-day moving average of $214.81. The company has a market capitalization of $92.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.75, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.59 and a 1-year high of $235.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released 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 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. Equities analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is 48.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WM shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. CIBC raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.65.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 4,126 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.11, for a total value of $941,181.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,288,582.29. The trade was a 6.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 75,173 shares of company stock valued at $17,075,967. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.