SG Americas Securities LLC Boosts Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 19.1% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 277,968 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 44,491 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $45,153,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,042 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 2,556 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $449,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. WPG Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 919 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. RDA Financial Network boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 2,459 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $431,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 607 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Waste Connections stock opened at $153.45 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $38.93 billion, a PE ratio of 37.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.51. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $146.89 and a 52-week high of $191.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The company’s 50 day moving average is $156.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.21.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.97% and a return on equity of 16.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.13 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 6th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.15%.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $234,885.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,861 shares in the company, valued at $5,145,703.99. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP James Little sold 2,605 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.98, for a total value of $427,167.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 34,395 shares in the company, valued at $5,640,092.10. This represents a 7.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 17,605 shares of company stock valued at $2,822,923 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price objective (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $199.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 price target (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Waste Connections from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $202.84.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections (NYSE: WCN) is a North American integrated waste services company that provides a range of solid waste and environmental services to municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers. The company offers collection, transportation, transfer, disposal and recycling services, and operates an extensive network of transfer stations and disposal facilities. Waste Connections positions itself as a provider of infrastructure-driven waste solutions across many regions of the United States and Canada.

The company’s operating activities include routine curbside and commercial collection, roll-off and container services, operation of landfills and transfer stations, and recycling and resource recovery programs.