Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Grows Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 11.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,381 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,514 shares during the quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $3,065,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WM. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Management by 170.5% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 119 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Sachetta LLC purchased a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on WM shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $219.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Waste Management from $215.00 to $204.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price objective on the stock. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $215.83.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 44,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares in the company, valued at $9,711,680. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM traded down $2.96 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $196.96. 2,472,217 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,705,870. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.74. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $209.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $204.54. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $149.71 and a twelve month high of $225.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82. The company had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 40.19%. Waste Management’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.51 EPS. Analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 49.10%.

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.