30,059 Shares in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Bought by Entropy Technologies LP

Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 30,059 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,066,000. Waste Management makes up about 0.6% of Entropy Technologies LP’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Management by 1.1% during the third 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 raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 3.9% in the third quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 1.9% in the third quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $546,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 4.1% in the third quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 1,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CRA Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 4.7% in the third quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 1,116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total transaction of $46,094.95. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,999,506.30. The trade was a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total transaction of $152,868.87. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at $10,046,109.78. The trade was a 1.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 16,055 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,340. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WM opened at $224.94 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $90.28 billion, a PE ratio of 33.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.48 and a twelve month high of $230.39. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $211.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $211.44.

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

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on WM. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $213.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.50.

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.