Modern Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Modern Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 195.6% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,862 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,217 shares during the quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $792,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WCN. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 70.8% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,200,977 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $195,115,000 after purchasing an additional 497,944 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 19.3% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 320,808 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $52,112,000 after purchasing an additional 51,810 shares in the last quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 15.9% during the first quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC now owns 314,556 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $51,096,000 after buying an additional 43,170 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 39.5% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 5,699 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $926,000 after acquiring an additional 1,615 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 25.9% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,317 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $539,000 after buying an additional 682 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $169.52 on Monday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $191.91. The stock has a market cap of $42.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $161.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $163.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 10.86%.The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.29 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on WCN shares. Citigroup increased their price target on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 price target (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Two 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, Waste Connections currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.05.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In related news, VP Patrick James Shea sold 7,500 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.26, for a total transaction of $1,171,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 19,737 shares in the company, valued at $3,084,103.62. The trade was a 27.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $234,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,145,703.99. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,395,755. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Connections Company Profile

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.