QRG Capital Management Inc. Sells 513 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

QRG Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,344 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 513 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $5,518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WM. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 4,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 123 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Waste Management by 892.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. General Partner Inc. bought a new stake in Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Waste Management by 65.7% during the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other Waste Management news, EVP Charles C. Boettcher sold 693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.59, for a total value of $152,868.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 45,542 shares in the company, valued at $10,046,109.78. This represents a 1.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 5,732 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.51, for a total value of $1,304,087.32. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 55,587 shares in the company, valued at $12,646,598.37. The trade was a 9.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 66,192 shares of company stock worth $15,025,861 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Management Trading Up 1.4 %

WM opened at $232.83 on Friday. Waste Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.59 and a fifty-two week high of $233.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.63 billion, a PE ratio of 34.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company’s 50-day moving average is $215.71 and its 200 day moving average is $213.89.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Waste Management had a return on equity of 37.93% and a net margin of 12.45%. As a group, research analysts predict that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 48.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. CIBC lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their target price on Waste Management from $242.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Waste Management from $255.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $235.94.

About Waste Management

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.