Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 0.2% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 73,707 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 143 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $15,725,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WM. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 83.9% in the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,770 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176 shares during the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Management by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 6,088 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,090,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $205,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Waste Management by 89.8% in the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 634 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $114,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, First Western Trust Bank acquired a new position in Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $343,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Waste Management Price Performance

Waste Management stock traded down $0.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $208.11. The company had a trading volume of 184,384 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,662,282. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $209.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $208.66. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.71 and a 1-year high of $225.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.52 billion, a PE ratio of 34.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82. Waste Management had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 39.52%. The firm had revenue of $5.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WM shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $213.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Waste Management from $226.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. CIBC cut their price target on shares of Waste Management from $223.00 to $213.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price objective 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. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.83.

Waste Management Profile

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.