Core Alternative Capital Has $6.01 Million Stock Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Core Alternative Capital lessened its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 12.8% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 27,199 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 3,998 shares during the quarter. Waste Management accounts for about 1.7% of Core Alternative Capital’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Core Alternative Capital’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $6,006,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,064,206,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in Waste Management by 444.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,206,026 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $487,157,000 after acquiring an additional 1,800,728 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Management by 15,782.4% in the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,728,486 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $395,512,000 after acquiring an additional 1,717,603 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 55.5% in the second quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 2,897,636 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $663,037,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 982.3% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 886,164 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $195,692,000 after purchasing an additional 804,285 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on WM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $234.00 to $223.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. DZ Bank assumed coverage on Waste Management in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Waste Management from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $238.00 to $242.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $256.00 price objective on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $251.19.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Shares of WM stock opened at $231.26 on Wednesday. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $194.11 and a 12 month high of $242.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.42, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $218.71 and its 200 day moving average is $219.20.

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

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 51.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other news, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 1,380 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.06, for a total value of $299,542.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,373,112.40. This represents a 8.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Company 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.