Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Stock Gets Price Target Trim from Citigroup

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) had its price objective cut by Citigroup from $182.00 to $175.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on WCN. Scotiabank set a $193.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Thursday. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $204.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, August 7th. UBS Group raised shares of Waste Connections from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $176.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $189.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $198.61.

Waste Connections Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of WCN opened at $167.70 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $160.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $161.34. Waste Connections has a 52 week low of $146.89 and a 52 week high of $179.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.49.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.29 earnings per share. Waste Connections’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Waste Connections will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, SVP Robert Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total value of $480,737.22. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,119.32. This represents a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total transaction of $416,425.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $122,262.38. This trade represents a 77.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Connections

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Group One Trading LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the second quarter worth $30,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 1,166.7% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at $41,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the second quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Wellington Altus USA Inc. grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 205.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Altus USA Inc. now owns 275 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections, Inc is a North American provider of solid waste collection, transfer, disposal, recycling and resource recovery services. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial and construction customers through local operations and provides services under municipal and other contracted arrangements.

Its business includes curbside and commercial waste collection, transfer stations, solid waste landfills, recycling facilities and organics processing. Waste Connections also provides environmental services for energy-producing customers, including the management and disposal of non-hazardous oilfield waste, and operates resource recovery and renewable energy projects in connection with certain waste facilities.

Founded in 1997, Waste Connections serves communities across the United States and Canada.