Man Group plc Takes $4.47 Million Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Man Group plc bought a new position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 26,820 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,471,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WCN. XXEC Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the second quarter valued at approximately $164,870,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,061,947,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth approximately $697,519,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $589,671,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $414,481,000. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In related news, VP Patrick James Shea sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were 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 owned 19,737 shares in the company, valued at $3,084,103.62. This represents a 27.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $5,145,703.99. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 14,311 shares of company stock worth $2,303,997 in the last ninety days. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective 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. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.89.

Waste Connections Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of WCN stock opened at $166.19 on Monday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $146.89 and a 1-year high of $185.33. The company has a market cap of $41.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.05, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $167.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $163.05.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.51 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.