Erste Asset Management GmbH Has $23.08 Million Position in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Erste Asset Management GmbH raised its position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 104,135 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,386 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $23,076,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. RHL Group LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on WM. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Waste Management from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $255.67.

Waste Management Price Performance

Shares of WM opened at $220.45 on Monday. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $194.11 and a fifty-two week high of $248.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.53 billion, a PE ratio of 31.90, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s 50-day moving average is $223.62 and its 200-day moving average is $224.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. Waste Management had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The business had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Management, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.70%.

About Waste Management

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.