Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Purchases 4,639 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund increased its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 42.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 15,452 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,639 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,118,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $857,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,039 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $546,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balboa Wealth Partners increased its holdings in Waste Management by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 1,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 5,826 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.12, for a total value of $1,294,071.12. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,424,457.04. This trade represents a 7.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,055 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,340. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Nine 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.94.

Waste Management Price Performance

Waste Management stock opened at $227.80 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The company has a market capitalization of $91.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $212.11 and its 200-day moving average is $212.29. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.59 and a 12 month high of $230.39.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 38.88%. Equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

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.