Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Takes Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 3,891 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $649,000.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Robert Michael Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total value of $480,737.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,119.32. This represents a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Patrick James Shea sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.26, for a total value of $1,171,950.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 19,737 shares in the company, valued at $3,084,103.62. This trade represents a 27.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,311 shares of company stock worth $2,303,997. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 price objective (up from $170.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Citigroup raised their target price on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, July 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.89.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

WCN opened at $166.36 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $167.00 and its 200-day moving average is $163.13. The stock has a market cap of $41.85 billion, a PE ratio of 40.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.48. 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 twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $185.33.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. 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 analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.29 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were given 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 was Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is 33.73%.

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.