Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Sells 23,172 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc decreased its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 340,092 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 23,172 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned 0.13% of Waste Connections worth $58,353,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Barclays PLC raised its stake 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 buying an additional 77,466 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,036,856 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $349,483,000 after acquiring an additional 109,701 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at $353,000. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at $316,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth $370,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $195.28 on Friday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.34 and a 52-week high of $201.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $192.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $185.98. The firm has a market cap of $50.45 billion, a PE ratio of 81.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.06. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is 51.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WCN shares. Truist Financial set a $220.00 target price on Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $221.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.21.

Waste Connections Company 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.