Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN Shares Acquired by Formuepleje A S

Formuepleje A S boosted its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,662 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,118 shares during the period. Formuepleje A S’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $5,797,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. XXEC Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter valued at about $164,870,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,061,947,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the second quarter worth approximately $589,671,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the second quarter worth approximately $510,526,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the second quarter worth approximately $477,944,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Stock Up 4.3%

Shares of Waste Connections stock traded up $6.67 on Thursday, hitting $163.49. The company had a trading volume of 1,569,284 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,539,316. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $160.84 and a 200-day moving average of $161.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $179.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.49.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.29 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.73%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In other news, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total value of $416,425.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 734 shares in the company, valued at $122,262.38. The trade was a 77.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total value of $480,737.22. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,119.32. The trade was a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WCN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Scotiabank set a $193.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Barclays boosted their target price on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $189.00 target price on Waste Connections in a report on Friday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.00.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections, Inc is a North American provider of solid waste collection, transfer, disposal, recycling and resource recovery services. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial and construction customers through local operations and provides services under municipal and other contracted arrangements.

Its business includes curbside and commercial waste collection, transfer stations, solid waste landfills, recycling facilities and organics processing. Waste Connections also provides environmental services for energy-producing customers, including the management and disposal of non-hazardous oilfield waste, and operates resource recovery and renewable energy projects in connection with certain waste facilities.

Founded in 1997, Waste Connections serves communities across the United States and Canada.