Ascent Group LLC Buys 4,862 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC has significantly increased its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. by 326.3%, owning a total of 6,352 shares worth approximately $1.186 million after acquiring an additional 4,862 shares in the second quarter.
• The company reported $1.29 earnings per share, surpassing analyst expectations of $1.25, with a net margin of 6.97% and revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter.
• Waste Connections announced a quarterly dividend of $0.315 per share, reflecting a 0.7% yield and a dividend payout ratio of 50.81%.

Ascent Group LLC lifted its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 326.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,352 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,862 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $1,186,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WCN. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 29.7% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,932 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,018,000 after purchasing an additional 1,357 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 92.8% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,551 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $693,000 after buying an additional 1,709 shares during the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 34.9% in the first quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,800 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $547,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections during the first quarter valued at $206,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas increased its position in Waste Connections by 28.0% during the first quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 489 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $174.30 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $44.72 billion, a PE ratio of 70.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.62. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.36 and a 1 year high of $201.66. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $181.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $187.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

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

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 6th were paid a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 6th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on WCN. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. They set a "buy" rating and a $221.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $216.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. CIBC reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Melius started coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Monday, June 9th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $213.64.

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.

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