Banco Santander S.A. Has $26.67 Million Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Banco Santander S.A. reduced its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 128,473 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 15,901 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $26,671,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 62.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 171 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Waste Management by 67.2% in the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 199 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.4 %

Waste Management stock opened at $219.60 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $88.14 billion, a PE ratio of 33.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $168.73 and a fifty-two week high of $226.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $212.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $209.92.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.07. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The business had revenue of $5.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Waste Management to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Waste Management from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.11.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $66,795.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,875 shares in the company, valued at $834,946.25. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate 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.