JGP Wealth Management LLC Grows Stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

JGP Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,949 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WM. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $211.02 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.27, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.77. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $180.25 and a one year high of $230.39. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $214.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $211.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.88% and a net margin of 12.35%. The business’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 45.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on WM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. William Blair started coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of 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, Argus boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $230.72.

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 value of $66,795.70. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $834,946.25. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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.