IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd Sells 10,290 Shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd lowered its stake in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 15.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 55,277 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 10,290 shares during the period. Waste Management accounts for approximately 1.3% of IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $11,154,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 278,185 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $56,135,000 after acquiring an additional 2,127 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Waste Management by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,240,429 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $854,446,000 after purchasing an additional 280,455 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Waste Management by 6.2% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 480,534 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $99,759,000 after purchasing an additional 28,266 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waste Management by 32.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,365 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,529,000 after buying an additional 1,798 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 79,192 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $15,980,000 after buying an additional 4,798 shares during the period. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Price Performance

WM opened at $228.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.04 billion, a PE ratio of 33.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s 50-day moving average is $223.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $216.28. Waste Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.59 and a 1 year high of $235.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

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

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. This is an increase from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is 48.53%.

Insider Activity at Waste Management

In related news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total value of $46,094.95. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,066 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,999,506.30. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Johnson Varkey sold 560 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.11, for a total transaction of $123,261.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,152 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,446.72. The trade was a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 95,577 shares of company stock valued at $21,662,464 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Waste Management from $231.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, CIBC lifted their price target on shares of Waste Management from $227.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.65.

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.