Saudi Central Bank Buys 8,448 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Saudi Central Bank raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 89.4% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 17,898 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,448 shares during the quarter. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $2,983,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WCN. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections during the 1st quarter valued at $577,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 12.8% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 219,290 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,946,000 after buying an additional 24,948 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Waste Connections by 2.9% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 24,463 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,572,000 after acquiring an additional 688 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections during the second quarter valued at $2,714,000. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,808,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $337,708,000 after acquiring an additional 17,197 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Trading Down 0.0%

WCN stock opened at $164.85 on Tuesday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $146.89 and a 12 month high of $181.28. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $167.92 and its 200 day moving average is $163.11. The company has a market capitalization of $41.47 billion, a PE ratio of 39.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.51 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.29 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th were issued a $0.35 dividend. 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 presently 33.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WCN has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $176.00 target price (up from $170.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $199.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Two equities 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.89.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In related news, SVP Robert Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total value of $480,737.22. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,995,119.32. This represents a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total value of $416,425.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 734 shares in the company, valued at $122,262.38. The trade was a 77.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Connections 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.