Argent Capital Management LLC Sells 10,308 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Argent Capital Management reduced its Waste Connections stake by 3.7%, selling 10,308 shares and retaining 267,109 shares worth approximately $41.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 86.09% of the company.
• Waste Connections reported quarterly earnings of $1.50 per share, beating estimates of $1.35, while revenue rose 6.4% year over year to $2.56 billion.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $202.42, compared with the stock’s recent price of $154.55. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, yielding about 0.9%.

Argent Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 3.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 267,109 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 10,308 shares during the quarter. Waste Connections comprises about 0.3% of Argent Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Argent Capital Management LLC owned about 0.11% of Waste Connections worth $41,116,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. XXEC Inc. bought a new position in Waste Connections during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $164,870,000. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 0.9% in the first 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 period. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 28.2% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position 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% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,763,742 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $835,370,000 after buying an additional 1,289,042 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.5%

Waste Connections stock traded up $0.73 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $154.55. The stock had a trading volume of 672,341 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,532,840. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $163.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $161.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.66. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $146.89 and a 1-year high of $179.74.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last posted 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 company had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections's payout ratio is presently 33.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on WCN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $210.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $204.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $202.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Robert Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total transaction of $480,737.22. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,666 shares in the company, valued at $1,995,119.32. The trade was a 19.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total transaction of $416,425.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $122,262.38. The trade was a 77.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Waste Connections

Waste Connections, Inc is a North American provider of solid waste collection, transfer, disposal, recycling and resource recovery services. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial and construction customers through local operations and provides services under municipal and other contracted arrangements.

Its business includes curbside and commercial waste collection, transfer stations, solid waste landfills, recycling facilities and organics processing. Waste Connections also provides environmental services for energy-producing customers, including the management and disposal of non-hazardous oilfield waste, and operates resource recovery and renewable energy projects in connection with certain waste facilities.

Founded in 1997, Waste Connections serves communities across the United States and Canada.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WCN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.