Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Purchased by Chapman Investment Management LLC

Chapman Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 23,084 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,045 shares during the quarter. Waste Management makes up about 3.5% of Chapman Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Chapman Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $4,658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in 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 stake in Waste Management by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. General Partner Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Waste Management by 65.7% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of WM stock opened at $228.38 on Wednesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $230.39. The company has a market capitalization of $91.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.59, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $212.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $212.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

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

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 44.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total value of $903,560.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 18,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,185,967.59. This trade represents a 17.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total value of $152,868.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 45,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,046,109.78. This represents a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 16,055 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,340. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Waste Management from $243.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Argus increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.94.

About Waste Management

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.