Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Bought by Intact Investment Management Inc.

Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 202.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,787 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 55,420 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $12,362,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WCN. Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $61,000. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Stock Down 1.0 %

Waste Connections stock traded down $1.70 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $163.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,086,551 shares, compared to its average volume of 794,367. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $168.22 and its 200 day moving average is $152.10. The company has a market cap of $42.18 billion, a PE ratio of 53.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.68. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $126.12 and a 52-week high of $173.02.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.02. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 9.70%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 37.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on WCN. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Waste Connections from $196.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lowered Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $170.00 to $181.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Waste Connections from $182.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Waste Connections from $195.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on Waste Connections from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Connections news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total value of $152,591.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Profile

Waste Connections, Inc provides non-hazardous waste collection, transfer, disposal, and resource recovery services in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services to residential, commercial, municipal, industrial, and exploration and production (E&P) customers; landfill disposal services; and recycling services for various recyclable materials, including compost, cardboard, mixed paper, plastic containers, glass bottles, and ferrous and aluminum metals.