Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC Acquires 131 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,547 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $756,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WM. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 170.5% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 119 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Sachetta LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, June 14th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $221.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $211.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $241.00 target price for the company. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $217.61.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM traded up $1.16 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $211.18. The company had a trading volume of 1,453,057 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,711,648. The firm has a market cap of $84.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.56, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day moving average of $208.07 and a 200-day moving average of $201.65. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $149.71 and a 12 month high of $214.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued 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 company had revenue of $5.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.98% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 49.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,324,156.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.