Baskin Financial Services Inc. Sells 4,719 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Baskin Financial Services Inc. lessened its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 277,350 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 4,719 shares during the period. Waste Connections accounts for approximately 3.4% of Baskin Financial Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Baskin Financial Services Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Waste Connections worth $42,667,000 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. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Waste Connections by 1.5% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,312 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $701,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,030 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $838,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Athena Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. Athena Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,829 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LifeGoal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. LifeGoal Investments LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $274,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, SVP Robert Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total transaction of $480,737.22. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,666 shares in the company, valued at $1,995,119.32. This trade represents a 19.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $122,262.38. This represents a 77.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WCN shares. UBS Group raised shares of Waste Connections from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $176.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Raymond James Financial set a $189.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce set a $184.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections and gave the stock an “outperformer” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $204.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Waste Connections from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.61.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of WCN traded down $2.44 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $165.47. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 399,525 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,551,737. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $146.89 and a 1-year high of $179.74. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $160.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $161.33. The stock has a market cap of $41.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.87, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.49.

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

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.73%.

Waste Connections Profile

Waste Connections, Inc is a North American provider of solid waste collection, transfer, disposal and recycling services. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial and construction customers, offering scheduled and on-demand collection as well as waste management solutions tailored to municipalities and businesses.

Its operations include local collection fleets, transfer stations, recycling and resource-recovery facilities, and landfills. Waste Connections also provides non-hazardous oilfield waste services, including the collection, transportation, treatment and disposal of waste generated by energy-production activities.

Founded in 1997, Waste Connections has grown through a combination of internal development and acquisitions.