Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Sold by PFG Advisors

PFG Advisors cut its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 7.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 16,450 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,308 shares during the period. PFG Advisors’ holdings in Waste Connections were worth $2,944,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Integrated Advisors Network LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $215,000. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $286,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at about $77,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at about $108,000. Finally, Perpetual Ltd raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 9.6% in the first quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 58,254 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,020,000 after buying an additional 5,079 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of WCN stock opened at $181.87 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $46.93 billion, a PE ratio of 59.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50-day moving average of $182.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $174.60. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $126.12 and a 1-year high of $187.54.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.07. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.23% and a return on equity of 15.16%. The business had revenue of $2.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.02 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were paid a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 7th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is 37.01%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Susan Netherton sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.13, for a total value of $358,260.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 10,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,805,272.14. This trade represents 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 available through this hyperlink. In other Waste Connections news, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total transaction of $2,902,215.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 48,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,706,466.95. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Susan Netherton sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.13, for a total transaction of $358,260.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 10,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,805,272.14. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,600 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,550. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WCN. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Eight Capital upgraded shares of Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $191.53.

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.