Insider Selling: Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) SVP Sells $416,425.00 in Stock

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total transaction of $416,425.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $122,262.38. The trade was a 77.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.9%

WCN stock opened at $169.81 on Friday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $188.09. The company has a market cap of $42.72 billion, a PE ratio of 40.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.48. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $163.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.29 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WCN. XXEC Inc. bought a new stake in Waste Connections during the second quarter worth about $164,870,000. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,061,947,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $697,519,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $589,671,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Waste Connections during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $510,526,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WCN has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $176.00 target price (up from $170.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $199.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Two research 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.89.

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.