Woodline Partners LP Acquires Shares of 73,096 Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Woodline Partners LP has acquired 73,096 shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE: WCN), worth approximately $14.3 million, establishing a new position in the company.
• Waste Connections reported quarterly earnings of $1.29 per share, exceeding expectations of $1.25, with revenue reaching $2.41 billion, a year-over-year increase of 7.1%.
• Multiple analysts have upgraded Waste Connections' stock rating to "strong buy", with revised price targets indicating a consensus of $215.00 per share.

Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 73,096 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $14,268,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its stake in Waste Connections by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $249,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. MWA Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 1.2% in the first quarter. MWA Asset Management now owns 4,783 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $934,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Tranquility Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 1.4% during the first quarter. Tranquility Partners LLC now owns 4,354 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $850,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management raised its stake in Waste Connections by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,116 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 29.2% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 283 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WCN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $197.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $216.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $221.00 to $219.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. CIBC reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Atb Cap Markets upgraded Waste Connections from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $215.00.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Waste Connections stock traded down $2.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $176.10. 1,527,286 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,001,709. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.36 and a 12-month high of $201.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $184.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $188.74. The company has a market cap of $45.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.01, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.61.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.39 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.97% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The business's revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. Waste Connections has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th were given a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 6th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is 50.81%.

About Waste Connections

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.