Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $195.56.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Waste Connections from $199.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Raymond James dropped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $208.00 to $205.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st.

Waste Connections Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:WCN opened at $176.94 on Tuesday. Waste Connections has a 12 month low of $128.41 and a 12 month high of $187.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.98, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $181.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $175.29.

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

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is presently 34.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Connections

In related 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 48,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,706,466.95. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Susan Netherton sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.13, for a total value of $358,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 10,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,805,272.14. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 48,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,706,466.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,600 shares of company stock worth $3,842,550 over the last three months. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 116.2% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Asset Dedication LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the first quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.