Everhart Financial Group Inc. Acquires New Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Everhart Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,289 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $503,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 101.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the second quarter valued at $40,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 17,251 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.81, for a total transaction of $4,171,464.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 44,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,674,944.26. This trade represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Tara J. Hemmer sold 4,818 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.83, for a total value of $1,165,136.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 78,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,084,739.94. This trade represents a 5.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 98,042 shares of company stock worth $23,039,777 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on WM. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, March 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Waste Management from $232.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $250.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (down from $254.00) on shares of Waste Management in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $254.59.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WM opened at $231.18 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $231.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $220.63. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $194.11 and a 52 week high of $248.13. The stock has a market cap of $93.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.50, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.57.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.70 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.945 dividend. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.42%.

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.