HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 10,093 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,089,000.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI bought a new position in Waste Connections during the first quarter worth $43,000. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 1,637.9% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 504 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 30.8% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 693 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at about $101,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.72% of the company’s stock.
In related news, VP Patrick James Shea sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.35, for a total value of $1,323,850.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 16,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,000,217. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Susan Netherton sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.33, for a total transaction of $300,825.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,101 shares in the company, valued at $734,133.33. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
NYSE WCN opened at $120.99 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market cap of $31.54 billion, a PE ratio of 142.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.70. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $87.23 and a one year high of $124.95.
Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 27th. The business services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 4.04% and a return on equity of 10.54%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 12th were paid a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 11th. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is 12.88%.
WCN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Waste Connections from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $113.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $120.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Wednesday, April 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $124.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Waste Connections from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 29th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $120.17.
About Waste Connections
Waste Connections, Inc provides waste collection, transfer, disposal, and recycling services in the United States and Canada. The company operates through five segments: Southern, Western, Eastern, Canada, Central, and Corporate. It offers collection services to residential, commercial, municipal, industrial, and E&P customers; landfill disposal services; and recycling services for various recyclable materials, including compost, cardboard, mixed paper, plastic containers, glass bottles, and ferrous and aluminum metals.
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