Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Sells 17,330 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lowered its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 20.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 68,509 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 17,330 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $11,755,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Versor Investments LP increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 75.1% during the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 8,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,470,000 after acquiring an additional 3,527 shares during the period. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth approximately $552,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth approximately $2,503,000. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 34.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 303,040 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $54,190,000 after acquiring an additional 77,466 shares during the period. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 65.6% during the third quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,034 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $543,000 after acquiring an additional 1,202 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Connections Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE:WCN opened at $186.16 on Tuesday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.34 and a 12 month high of $194.83. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $183.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $48.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.89, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 52.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. CIBC cut their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $202.43.

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.