Jarislowsky Fraser Ltd bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 4,511 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $290,000.
A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Spirit of America Management Corp NY purchased a new stake in Waste Connections during the first quarter worth $110,000. Independent Portfolio Consultants Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 10.1% in the second quarter. Independent Portfolio Consultants Inc. now owns 1,833 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $118,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 34.2% in the fourth quarter. Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,585 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 223.5% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,397 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 1,656 shares during the period. Finally, Capital One National Association bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the first quarter valued at approximately $208,000. 61.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Waste Connections, Inc. (WCN) opened at 64.56 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.01 billion, a PE ratio of 54.90 and a beta of 0.23. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $47.81 and a 52 week high of $67.14. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $64.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.94.
Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The business services provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.15 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 7.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 61.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post $2.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Waste Connections announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, August 2nd that authorizes the company to repurchase 13,180,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 8th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 4th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.11%.
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Several analysts have recently commented on WCN shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $68.00 to $63.33 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 28th. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 30th. Barclays PLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 28th. BidaskClub downgraded shares of Waste Connections from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 24th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, June 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.47.
In other news, COO Darrell W. Chambliss sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.05, for a total value of $1,626,250.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Edward E. Guillet sold 11,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.27, for a total value of $750,605.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 93,900 shares of company stock worth $6,871,801. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.
Waste Connections Company Profile
Waste Connections, Inc is a solid waste services company in North America. The Company provides waste collection, transfer, disposal and recycling services in markets in the United States and Canada. The Company operates through six segments: Southern segment, Western segment, Eastern segment, Canada segment, Central segment and E&P segment.
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