Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. Takes $1.58 Million Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 7,169 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,583,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Waste Management in the 1st quarter worth $38,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in Waste Management during the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new position in Waste Management in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, eCIO Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the first quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total transaction of $299,542.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,373,112.40. This represents a 8.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of WM stock opened at $221.39 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $89.19 billion, a PE ratio of 34.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.58. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.11 and a 1 year high of $242.58. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $211.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $220.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The business services provider reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $6.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.96 EPS. Research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $271.00 to $266.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Waste Management from $234.00 to $223.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Monday. Citigroup raised their price target on Waste Management from $268.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $255.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $248.95.

Waste Management Profile

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.