Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $48.08 Million Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 13.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 268,558 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 40,289 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $48,079,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 9,770 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,750,000 after buying an additional 849 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Equity Partners grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 1,854 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $258,000. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 11,957 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,141,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. Finally, Abbrea Capital LLC lifted its stake in Waste Management by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Abbrea Capital LLC now owns 2,588 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Up 1.0 %

NYSE WM opened at $212.10 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The company has a market cap of $85.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.71, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50 day moving average of $208.75 and a 200-day moving average of $187.69. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.71 and a 1-year high of $214.54.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $5.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 11.98%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,677 shares in the company, valued at $6,217,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.50, for a total transaction of $523,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 29,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,217,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Donald J. Smith sold 329 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.56, for a total transaction of $65,326.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,522 shares in the company, valued at $1,096,448.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,007 shares of company stock valued at $3,696,520 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Waste Management from $165.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Waste Management from $230.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. StockNews.com raised Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.88.

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.