Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Shares Up 0%

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)’s share price traded up 0% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $166.85 and last traded at $166.18. 135,824 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 889,502 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.17.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group downgraded Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $170.00 to $181.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $166.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $136.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.87.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $42.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.14, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $168.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $151.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.03. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 14.42% and a net margin of 9.51%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a $0.285 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 38.51%.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In related news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total value of $152,591.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. First Affirmative Financial Network boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 3.9% in the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 1,842 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 8,844 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,321,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 1,673 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $225,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,537 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $744,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $475,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections, Inc provides non-hazardous waste collection, transfer, disposal, and resource recovery services in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services to residential, commercial, municipal, industrial, and exploration and production (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.