Explore Capital Management LLC Takes $6.86 Million Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Explore Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 39,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,856,000. Waste Connections accounts for 4.2% of Explore Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in Waste Connections by 55.7% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,991,112 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $350,603,000 after acquiring an additional 711,990 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD increased its stake in Waste Connections by 51.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD now owns 88,336 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,529,000 after buying an additional 29,925 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its position in Waste Connections by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 385,446 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $67,761,000 after buying an additional 8,725 shares in the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Waste Connections by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 163,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,780,000 after buying an additional 26,684 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 770.4% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 57,519 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,112,000 after buying an additional 50,911 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $163.53 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $41.81 billion, a PE ratio of 39.22, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.62. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $155.65 and a 52-week high of $201.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $170.02 and a 200-day moving average of $173.67.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.37 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 11.37% and a return on equity of 16.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.16 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WCN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank set a $197.00 price target on Waste Connections and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group set a $205.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $213.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $183.00 target price (down from $196.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, January 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $203.75.

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.