Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.05 EPS

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.23% and a return on equity of 15.16%. Waste Connections’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.17 earnings per share. Waste Connections updated its FY 2024 guidance to EPS.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

WCN traded down $2.76 during trading on Friday, reaching $175.80. 779,918 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 882,017. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. Waste Connections has a 1 year low of $126.12 and a 1 year high of $187.54. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $182.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $175.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be given a $0.315 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $205.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday. Citigroup lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $198.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.56.

Insider Activity

In other Waste Connections news, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total transaction of $2,902,215.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 48,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,706,466.95. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total transaction of $2,902,215.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 48,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,706,466.95. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Susan Netherton sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.13, for a total transaction of $358,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 10,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,805,272.14. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,600 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,550 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.31% 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.