Zacks Research Has Pessimistic Outlook of WCN Q2 Earnings

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research lowered their Q2 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Waste Connections in a research report issued on Wednesday, May 14th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the business services provider will post earnings of $1.26 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.35. The consensus estimate for Waste Connections’ current full-year earnings is $5.28 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Waste Connections’ Q4 2025 earnings at $1.30 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $5.12 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.23 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.46 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $5.72 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.38 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $6.48 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $221.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Waste Connections from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on Waste Connections in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $208.21.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $190.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $192.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $186.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 79.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Connections has a one year low of $160.34 and a one year high of $201.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.04 EPS.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be given a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.85%.

Institutional Trading of Waste Connections

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its position in Waste Connections by 4.6% in the first quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $249,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 705 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $121,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. MWA Asset Management grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. MWA Asset Management now owns 4,783 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $934,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Tranquility Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Tranquility Partners LLC now owns 4,354 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $850,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 14,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,445,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.