TD Asset Management Inc Grows Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

TD Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,845,277 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,473 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $675,222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WCN. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $697,519,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 39.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,455,162 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $783,218,000 after purchasing an additional 1,264,150 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 58.1% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,900,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $508,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065,653 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 17.6% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 6,136,218 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,078,536,000 after purchasing an additional 918,245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 2.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,585,284 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,552,682,000 after purchasing an additional 717,440 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $150.87 on Thursday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $193.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.80, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $158.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $165.91.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 16.49% and a net margin of 10.97%.The firm had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 6th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.15%.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In other news, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt bought 50,000 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $152.24 per share, for a total transaction of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 301,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,826,828.08. The trade was a 19.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Eric Hansen sold 6,000 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.82, for a total value of $988,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,200,347. The trade was a 31.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WCN. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price objective (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $211.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays set a $180.00 price objective on Waste Connections and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings cut Waste Connections from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Waste Connections from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $203.35.

About Waste Connections

Waste Connections (NYSE: WCN) is a North American integrated waste services company that provides a range of solid waste and environmental services to municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers. The company offers collection, transportation, transfer, disposal and recycling services, and operates an extensive network of transfer stations and disposal facilities. Waste Connections positions itself as a provider of infrastructure-driven waste solutions across many regions of the United States and Canada.

The company’s operating activities include routine curbside and commercial collection, roll-off and container services, operation of landfills and transfer stations, and recycling and resource recovery programs.