Insider Selling: Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) SVP Sells $480,737.22 in Stock

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) SVP Robert Michael Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total transaction of $480,737.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,995,119.32. The trade was a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $167.54 on Friday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $146.89 and a 1 year high of $191.00. The firm has a market cap of $42.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.37, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $163.25.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.29 earnings per share. Waste Connections’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Waste Connections from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $211.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $218.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $202.42.

Institutional Trading of Waste Connections

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,042 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $533,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 2,556 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $449,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,312 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $701,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC raised its stake in Waste Connections by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 919 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in Waste Connections by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 607 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.