Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Shares Sold by Zullo Investment Group Inc.

Zullo Investment Group Inc. reduced its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,486 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 75 shares during the quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $502,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 67.2% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,765,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $366,537,000 after acquiring an additional 709,678 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Waste Management by 32.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its position in Waste Management by 1.6% in the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 14,060 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,919,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 2.5% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 6,117 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ledyard National Bank grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 10.8% in the third quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 2,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $479,000 after buying an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $228.40 on Thursday. 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 $91.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.59 and a twelve month high of $230.39. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $212.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $212.70.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on WM shares. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management 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 value of $123,261.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,014,446.72. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.89, for a total transaction of $903,560.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 18,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,185,967.59. This represents a 17.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,055 shares of company stock worth $3,578,340 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.