Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately bullish: Twenty analysts rate Waste Connections a consensus “Moderate Buy,” including 14 buys, four holds, and two strong buys. The average 12-month price target is approximately $200.89, versus a recent price of $165.88.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: The company reported earnings of $1.50 per share, beating the $1.35 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 6.4% year over year to $2.56 billion.
• Waste Connections pays a modest dividend and has strong institutional ownership: Its quarterly dividend is $0.35 per share, equivalent to a 0.8% annual yield, while hedge funds and other institutions own 86.09% of the stock.

Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $200.8947.

Several analysts recently weighed in on WCN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $199.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $176.00 target price (up from $170.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

NYSE:WCN opened at $165.88 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $41.73 billion, a PE ratio of 39.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.48. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $167.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $163.09. Waste Connections has a fifty-two week low of $146.89 and a fifty-two week high of $185.33.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) 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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were paid 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 yield of 0.8%. Waste Connections's payout ratio is presently 33.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Patrick James Shea sold 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.26, for a total transaction of $1,171,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 19,737 shares in the company, valued at $3,084,103.62. This trade represents a 27.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total value of $416,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 734 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $122,262.38. This represents a 77.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 14,311 shares of company stock valued at $2,303,997. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Connections

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 17,242.8% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 48,936,350 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $8,157,200,000 after purchasing an additional 48,654,179 shares during the last quarter. XXEC Inc. bought a new stake in Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter worth about $164,870,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,210,661 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,983,500,000 after buying an additional 106,763 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in Waste Connections by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 6,468,259 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,134,781,000 after buying an additional 1,420,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Waste Connections during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,061,947,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Waste Connections

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.

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