MWA Asset Management Cuts Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

MWA Asset Management trimmed its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 1.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,908 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 74 shares during the quarter. MWA Asset Management’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $878,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Asset Dedication LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 1st quarter worth $43,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the second quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in Waste Connections during the third quarter valued at about $47,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WCN shares. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, October 25th. Raymond James cut 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 report on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eight Capital raised shares of Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, October 4th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $195.56.

Waste Connections Price Performance

WCN stock opened at $187.50 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.39 billion, a PE ratio of 51.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $180.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.26. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $130.33 and a 52-week high of $188.30.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.81% and a return on equity of 15.43%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.17 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th were given a dividend of $0.315 per share. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.62%.

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.