Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 21.5% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 142,795 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 25,238 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $24,562,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Affirmative Financial Network boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 3.9% in the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 1,842 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $317,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 8,844 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $475,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Traynor Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 116.2% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE WCN traded down $1.06 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $181.29. 796,398 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 897,299. The company has a market cap of $46.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.89, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $170.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $165.25. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $126.12 and a 52 week high of $182.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Waste Connections had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.83 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th were given a $0.285 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WCN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Waste Connections from $181.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. StockNews.com raised Waste Connections from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 18th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Waste Connections from $196.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, CIBC increased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $181.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.53.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.00, for a total value of $332,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,049,286. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Michael W. Harlan sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.59, for a total value of $251,385.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,004 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,341,390.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 2,000 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.00, for a total value of $332,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,049,286. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $752,385 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Profile

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.