AGF Management Ltd. Sells 38,631 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

AGF Management Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 6.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 521,870 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 38,631 shares during the quarter. AGF Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.13% of Waste Management worth $111,336,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 83.9% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,770 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $532,000. Jump Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Management by 27.1% during the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 5,282 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $946,000 after acquiring an additional 1,126 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $312,000. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $297,000. Institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $208.23 on Wednesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $149.71 and a 12 month high of $225.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.08, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $209.38 and its 200 day moving average is $208.77.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.82. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 39.52%. The business had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.51 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $330,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 44,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price 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, July 26th. CIBC dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $223.00 to $213.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $229.00 to $224.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $213.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.83.

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.