Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Sold by M&T Bank Corp

M&T Bank Corp lowered its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,984 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,533 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $5,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Rational Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $166.58 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $167.62 and a 200-day moving average of $153.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $126.12 and a 52-week high of $173.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.98 billion, a PE ratio of 54.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.67.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Waste Connections had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.81 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a $0.285 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 37.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WCN shares. UBS Group lowered Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $181.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Atb Cap Markets lowered Waste Connections from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $146.50 to $179.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total value of $152,591.34. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Waste Connections

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.