Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys New Shares in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 305,302 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $50,891,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WCN. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 1,166.7% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 346.2% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Robert Michael Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total transaction of $480,737.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,119.32. This trade represents a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,145,703.99. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,811 shares of company stock worth $1,887,572. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Waste Connections Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of WCN opened at $169.10 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $165.99 and its 200 day moving average is $163.11. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $146.89 and a 12-month high of $188.75. The company has a market capitalization of $42.54 billion, a PE ratio of 40.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.48.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.15. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 10.86%.The business had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.29 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 price objective (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $211.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.89.

Waste Connections 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.