Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Price Target Raised to $201.00

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) had its target price lifted by Royal Bank of Canada from $199.00 to $201.00 in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price objective (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $195.56.

Waste Connections Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of Waste Connections stock traded down $2.76 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $175.80. The company had a trading volume of 780,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 751,559. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $182.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $175.07. Waste Connections has a fifty-two week low of $126.12 and a fifty-two week high of $187.54. The firm has a market cap of $45.37 billion, a PE ratio of 52.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.23% and a return on equity of 15.16%. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Connections will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is presently 34.13%.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In other news, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $2,902,215.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 48,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,706,466.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total value of $401,925.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $214,243.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $2,902,215.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 48,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,706,466.95. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,600 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,550. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Connections

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 1,167.4% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 473,422 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $83,020,000 after acquiring an additional 436,067 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 438.5% in the first quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 535,471 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $92,106,000 after buying an additional 436,041 shares during the period. Nicholas Company Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the second quarter worth $64,176,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 252.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 510,243 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $89,477,000 after buying an additional 365,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 4,567.2% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 253,567 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $44,466,000 after acquiring an additional 248,134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.