R Squared Ltd Grows Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

R Squared Ltd lifted its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 139.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,927 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,783 shares during the period. Waste Connections makes up 0.9% of R Squared Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. R Squared Ltd’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $1,613,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Praxis Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 30.1% in the first quarter. Praxis Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,535 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,711,000 after buying an additional 2,436 shares in the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 1st quarter worth about $417,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 27.5% in the first quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 937 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $152,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at about $318,000. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

WCN stock traded up $3.87 on Tuesday, reaching $171.49. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 452,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,676,463. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.89 and a 52 week high of $191.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $43.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $157.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $163.85.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 16.49% and a net margin of 10.97%.The firm had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 34.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WCN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 target price (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays set a $180.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Waste Connections from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price objective (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Three research 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $202.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt acquired 50,000 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $152.24 per share, with a total value of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 301,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,826,828.08. This trade represents a 19.92% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the 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 owned 32,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,145,703.99. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,605 shares of company stock valued at $2,822,923. Corporate insiders own 0.27% 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.