Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Has $124.26 Million Position in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 615,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 58,826 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Waste Management worth $124,263,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in Waste Management by 67.2% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,765,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $366,537,000 after purchasing an additional 709,678 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Waste Management by 18.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 49,971 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,270,000 after purchasing an additional 7,776 shares during the last quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Management by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC now owns 1,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Waste Management by 77.4% during the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 12,298 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,553,000 after buying an additional 5,367 shares during the period. Finally, First Financial Bankshares Inc acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth about $204,000. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on WM shares. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $235.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Waste Management from $227.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank upped their price target on Waste Management from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Waste Management from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.94.

Waste Management Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE WM opened at $229.70 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $92.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.78. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.59 and a 52 week high of $230.63. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $213.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $213.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The business services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (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, equities analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Waste Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.12%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO John A. Carroll sold 209 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.55, for a total transaction of $46,094.95. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 44,405 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $10,143,434.15. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,061 shares in the company, valued at $48,212,664.23. This trade represents a 17.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 60,460 shares of company stock valued at $13,721,774 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.