213,133 Shares in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN Purchased by Jupiter Topco LLC

Key Points

• Jupiter Topco LLC acquired 213,133 Waste Connections shares worth approximately $35.5 million, while institutional investors collectively owned 86.09% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $200.89; recent targets range from $176 to $210.
• Waste Connections exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.50 EPS and $2.56 billion in revenue, up 6.4% year over year. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.35, equal to a 0.8% annualized yield.

Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 213,133 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $35,525,000. Jupiter Topco LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Waste Connections at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WCN. XXEC Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter valued at $164,870,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 0.9% during 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 purchasing an additional 106,763 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 28.2% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,420,921 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the second quarter worth $1,061,947,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,763,742 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $835,370,000 after buying an additional 1,289,042 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WCN. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $176.00 price target (up from $170.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Two 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $200.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total value of $234,885.00. Following 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Patrick James Shea sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.26, for a total value of $1,171,950.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 19,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,084,103.62. This represents a 27.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 14,311 shares of company stock worth $2,303,997. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of WCN stock opened at $166.19 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $167.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $163.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $41.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.05, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.48. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month 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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.15. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.51 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.29 earnings per share. Waste Connections's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were given a $0.35 dividend. 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 currently 33.73%.

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.

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